The Spirit Within Me
by Sleepy Sheep Guardian
Summary: KaiRei. Now that she has escaped from the abbey, Ray has to find someone to assimilate so that she can stay human. And she chose our nekojin. The only problem is she's slowly draining the life out of him. Can the team save both of them?
1. Escape

SS-Hello everyone! My name's Sleepy Sheep! Or SS for short, and I'll be your authoress for this fic.

Tym-And I'm her sidekick Tym…Tyrannomon if you want to be formal.

SS-But no one wants to be, so nicknames are fine. BTW, this is my first BeyBlade fic so be nice. I'm writing this for my friend Madison, who got me into BB in the first place. I'm still playing around with facts and events so please don't get mad if something's wrong. I suppose I've seen 10 or 15 episodes by now, and I think I know enough to get through this. 

It's not AU, like all my other stories, it's set about a month after Tyson defeated Tala in the championships. All the bladers are still friends (Even Kai) and live near one another, so as you can tell, I'm not going with the next season. Give it a chance; if you don't mind me using my writer's license to make some adjustments, then stick around…you might like this. 

DISCLAIMER: Let's see…so far we don't own YGO or Digimon…now we don't own BB. Wow…I wonder what other animes we don't own.

SS-We don't own any…*sigh* Oh…and this isn't one of those long chapter stories, it does have its deep areas, but it shouldn't exceed 5 or 6 chapters. 

~*~*~*~

The Spirit Within Me

Prologue/Chapter one 

Dedicated to my good friend and fellow anime fanatic, M-sen (Madison)

~Key~

"Hello" = Talking

'Bye' = Thoughts/thinking 

And in later chapters… [Hey] = Bit beasts talking

~*~*~*~

          'I can't recall how long I've been confined here, how long they've tortured my soul, how long those jerks have tried to harness my spirit, but I do know that it's been too long.' The figure in question opened her eyes, slowly scanning the dark, stonewall, area for any signs of those lowlifes… those humans. If she planned on escaping, she had to make sure that no one was in the vicinity. 

'I have to get out today, before they electrocute me again.' She placed her paws against the glass, and then put her hind legs behind her (A/N: She's in a glass tube, but you all knew that right? Cool.). Closing her eyes, she summoned all the strength she had left in her, all the energy that hadn't been absorbed by the machine below her, and pushed against her cage. 

'If I don't make it out now, I'll never be free…' Nothing was happening; the glass didn't budge. 'I can't, no…I won't stay here any longer…' It seemed to be giving way, for some of the liquid she was floating in began to leak out near the bottom. 'I won't be used like the others…they can't take my spirit…' Cracks were visible now, and the liquid seeping out was forming a pool on the floor. 'Nobody will ever have my spirit as long as I'm still standing!' The glass finally gave in, the cylinder cracked, and she fell to the floor with a loud clout. She was a mess, without the green fluid that once encased her, she was unstable, and her spirit was floating freely in around her. 

'Argh…that didn't go exactly as I expected.' Her escape from the glass tube didn't go unnoticed though, as soon as she had breached, an alarm went off, and men started filing in. 

'No…I've come too far, I have to…have to…assume a form.' Pulling herself together, she forced herself to take on a human form; it was her only way of escape from that dingy room.

"Here it is! The one that broke out! Hurry; hook up the spare extractor! We must put it back before it takes on a human form!" As half of the men began to boot up the spare machine in the corner, the figure that had broken out was staring at the human intently.

'Too little too late, you pathetic excuse for a life form.' Her green spirit quickly began to take shape, and assumed the form of a human girl in a matter of seconds. 

"Damn it!" He turned to the others and motioned them over. "All of you; forget the machine! Restrain the girl now!" But the girl was already gone. She was racing through the halls as fast as her newfound legs could carry her. 

'I have to get out of here before they catch me.' Coming across a fork in the hall, she panicked. 'Right or left…right or left…' Since she was right handed, she went that way. After a few minutes, she came across an empty room, and entered it. As she caught her breath, she took a moment to look at herself. She was pretty tall, five foot six inches approximately. She was very pale though, and had short, light blond hair that barely touched her shoulders. 'I guess I don't look too bad, for a human, but I think I'll definitely need clothes.' She scanned the room, and found some garments lying on the bed across from her. She picked up the gray-blue pants and put them on, they hung loosely on her, but they'd do. She then slipped on the matching blue T-shirt and made for the door, until something on the side of her forehead caught her attention.

'Ow…I forgot about that.' She reached up and fingered the tab coming out of her temple. 'I have to hide that.' Grabbing hold of the bed sheet, she ripped a piece off it and wrapped it around her head, tying a tight knot in the back, letting her pale hair cover it. 'There, that'll do, at least until I can find a decent human to assimilate (A/N: It'll be explained more in depth later.). There's no way in hell I'm absorbing someone in this dump.' And with that last thought; she bolted, using her incredible speed to slip through the security and out into the world. It was cold, but she didn't care, as long as she was out of that prison she was happier than a puppy with a million bones. As soon as she had gained some distance, she turned and took one last look at her 'home'. The alarm was still on, and she smiled knowing that she had outwitted them. 

'Good bye and good riddance, I hope I never have to lay my eyes on you again.' With that, she ran, ran far, far away until she collapsed from exhaustion beside a tree. It might not have been a comfortable place to sleep, but at least she was away from that despicable abbey. 

~*~

          'Oh man! I'm late, I'm late, I'm late…and now I'm starting to sound like the rabbit from Alice in Wonderland!' A boy in a loose Chinese top, baggy, blue pants, and long dark-colored hair dashed out of his house and onto the streets, clutching his blade in one hand, and a bag of chips in the other. 'Man, Kai is going to kill me if I'm late for practice…again!' He rounded the corner and continued running at his blistering pace, narrowly avoiding trees, animals, and people…well…most people. "Ahh!" 

          Landing on his side with a thump, the boy groaned softly, and rolled onto his back. "Oh man…somebody get the license of that car…huh?" Pulling himself up to a sitting position, he noticed just exactly what he had tripped over…or more specifically, whom he had tripped over. 

          "Oh…ahh…" A girl around his age with short, snowy blond hair and pale skin sat up rubbing her arm, obviously from where the boy had run into her. 

          "Oh man…" He moved closer to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, are you alright? I'm really sorry…I was in such a rush I wasn't looking where I was going. Are you ok?" The girl looked up into the boy's mahogany eyes, as if studying him for a moment. "Uh…you're not hurt are you?" She smiled, shaking her head to answer him. 

          "I'm…ok. I'm not hurt." He smiled in relief and stood up, brushing the dirt off his clothes before offering her a hand.

          "That's good. Once again, I'm so sorry." She took his hand and got up, and then dusted herself off while he continued. "See, I'm supposed to meet my friends this afternoon and I kind of…forgot. And once I did remember, I just bolted. However, that doesn't make up for what I did. I hope you can forgive me." She looked at him again, taking in what he said and thinking carefully before replying.

          "It's alright. I'm not hurt. I'm supposed to meet my friends, so…"

          "Oh, you are? Well then I guess both of us should be going, huh?"

          "Uh…I forgot where…can you…?" The boy blinked, closed his eyes and nodded.

          "Oh, do you need help finding your friend's house? Are you new here?" She nodded. "No problem! If you tell me the address I can get you there-oh man!" He checked his watch and panicked.

          "Is there a problem-ahh!" Before she could finish her sentence, the boy had grabbed her wrist and started running.

          "I'm sorry, but I really have to get to my friend's house! Once we get there, we can all help you get to your friends. By the way, my name's Rei."

          "M-my name's Ray." He looked over his shoulder for a second.

          "Really? Wow, what a coincidence. Well we're almost there Ray, I bet my friend's will love to meet you!"

          "Really?"

          "Sure! I mean you're just like me! And they like me, so they'll like you!" She smiled and kept up with his pace. 

          'It looks like I picked the perfect person to assimilate.' She sighed as they turned the corner and began to slow down a bit. 'Everything's going to be just great.' 

~*~*~*~

SS-Well there we go. The first chapter's out and I can start the second one. Actually, I was going to cut it off when the girl fell asleep by the tree and call that the prologue, but it was barely two pages…and that's just too short. So I combined the prologue with half of chapter one. 

Tym-That doesn't qualify as a mistake…but this one might. Isn't the girl form of that name Rei? And the boy form's Ray? 

SS-Well, I'm used to seeing the neko-jin as Rei, and spelling them both that way would be too confusing, so that's how it's going to be. 

Tym- v_v;; Fine…it's your fic.

SS-Exactly! So please review people! 

Tym-Constructive criticism is fine, but flames will be doused, so…yea ^-^ Ashes dudes and dudettes!

SS-…you just had to add in that last part didn't you? 

Tym-Of course! It's my closing! 


	2. Unleashing the Jaguar

SS-Well, M-sen wants me to continue, and it looks like some readers want me to too (Thanks Hiroko and Just-some-girl), so here we go.

Tym-*sigh* These are the good days, the days that you're inspired and able to update stories like that.

SS-Uh huh…plus, M-sen would kill me if I didn't update soon ^_~ 

~*~*~*~

The Spirit Within Me

Chapter 2 

~Key~

"Hello" = Talking

'Hey' = Thinking/thoughts

[Hi] = Bit beasts talking

~*~*~*~

          As soon as they had turned the corner and slowed down, Rei let go of her hand. He then proceeded down the block, stopping upon reaching his friend's house. "Here we are. Wait here, all right Ray? I'll introduce you in a second." She nodded, and he knocked against the wooden gate. He didn't wait for an answer though, and opened the door slowly.

A few minutes earlier 

          "Where can he be? I can't believe he's late." A boy with light blue bangs and dark blue hair said, slightly irritated. He was leaning against the gate, watching a hyper blond and an annoying boy with a hat beyblading a few feet away. 

          "Actually Kai, Rei still has two minutes." 

"Yea, plus I'm sure he'll be here soon Kai." The blond answered, his face never leaving the blades. 

          "Yea, hopefully with some snacks!" Another boy sitting opposite of Kai with a laptop in front of him looked up from the screen.

          "Is that all you ever think about Tyson (1), food?" Finally looked away from the battle, Tyson replied.

          "No…I also think about beybattles Kenny." Everyone sighed…the obvious answer. Kai didn't know why he was putting up with this. Two members of his team weren't battling seriously, and the one person on his team that he could really tolerate was late…again. He stopped leaning and walked over to the battle. Then he set Dranzer and launched it near the middle of the two others. The blue blade quickly knocked the two back to their respective owners before returning to her own. 

          "Hey, why'd you do that Kai?"

          "Yea dude, what's the deal?" Kai set Dranzer again and walked closer to them.

          "The deal, Tyson, is that you and Max aren't taking this training seriously, Kenny's playing solitaire, and Rei's not even here!" He launched his blade towards the door, not caring if he caused any damage.

Back on track 

          "Hey guys-Ahh!" Rei quickly closed the door before the spinning blade made contact with his face. It slammed into the door instead, making a nice dent in the wood. 

          "Rei, are you all right?" He turned to her and nodded sheepishly.

          "Yea, yea I'm fine." He opened the door again, just enough for the kids inside to see his face. Seeing that none of them were going to launch their blade at him, he widened the crack, saw the blue blade stuck in the door, took it out gently, and looked over to his captain. "What are you trying to do to me Kai? Knock my fangs out?" He threw the Dranzer back to the bluenette who caught it effortlessly. 

          "It's about time you showed up."

          "Chill out Kai, he still has 30 seconds to spare!"

          "And he also brought chips! All right Rei!" Tyson ran up to him, snagged the chips, and tried to drag the Chinese boy over. "Come on, we can eat while we blade!"

          "Hold on Tyson, there's someone I want you all to meet." 

          "Who?" Rei turned to his new friend and motioned her to come in. She reluctantly stepped into the yard as Rei closed the door behind them.

          "Hello."

          'Hm…I thought she had blond hair, not dark brown…oh well.' "Guys, this is Ray. I ran into her on my way over…actually, I tripped over her. That's why I'm later than normal. She wanted me to help her find her friend's house, but I wanted to get here first so that we can all help her." 

          "Um hm, but you don't have to do that right away. You can finish…uh…whatever you were planning on doing first."

          "Really? Ok, but let me introduce you to the gang. The blond is Max, he's really nice, just keep him away from sugar."

"Hi there Ray!" 

"The guy in the hat next to him is Tyson."

"That's cool, you two got the same name."

"And the boy with the laptop is Kenny." 

"If you give me the address, Dizzi can find the place in no time." They all walked over to her and shook hands, but Ray noticed that the boy with the scarf standing away from them didn't come over.

          "Rei…who's that?" He looked over and smiled.

          "Oh, that's Kai, he's our captain. Just stay on his good side and you'll be fine." Ray blinked, captain? It's not like they're on a boat.

          "Your…captain?" They all nodded while Max explained.

          "He's the captain of our beyblade team." Ray thought hard…she had heard that word a lot.

          "Bey…blade?"

          "Yup! We're the unstoppable BladeBreakers! I'm sure you heard of us, right Ray?" 

          "…beyblade…Blade…Breakers?" Ray knew she heard that name before too…and then it hit her…they were one of those beyblading teams that used bitbeasts. The team that won the championships…she remembered them specifically because the men that studied her had argued about that team a lot. 

          "That's right Ray, hey, do you beyblade?" She stepped away from all of them, starring at Rei intently, which soon turned into a glare, her brows furrowed. 

          "No…I'd…I'd never beyblade. I could never use a bitbeast like that!"

          "What are you talking about?" Rei tried to get closer to her, but she kept retreating.

          'What is wrong with that girl?' Kai thought.

          "You…you all have bitbeasts!?!" The team exchanged looks with each other and then nodded. "I-I don't believe it…I can't believe I actually assimilated someone who uses a bitbeast to do their dirty work!" Kai's eyes widened.

          'A-assimilated?'

          "What are you talking about?" She pointed at Rei.

          "You! You use a bitbeast when you beyblade, do you not?!"

          "Well…yes…I do."

          "Uh! I thought you would be different…but you're just like all the others back in that horrible abbey!" Kai was listening very closely now, setting Dranzer in his launcher.

          "Abbey? You were in an abbey?"

          "Yes…and after all the time I was tortured there, after all the trouble I went through to get out, I end up taking on someone whose no better than the men there!"

          "Hey, Ray, calm down would ya? We don't even know what you're talking about."

          "You stay away from me, all of you! You all use bitbeasts for your own selfish reasons! When they should be honored and free!"

          "But we don't force out bitbeasts to do things bad like other beybladers, we care about them and in return, they battle with us."

          "Lies…nothing but lies!" A green light surrounded her, and her eyes began to glow as well.

          "Ray, Max isn't lying, none of us are. Now calm down before you-"

          "Shut up Rei! It's bad enough I had to assimilate you, just back off!"

          "Assimilate? What are you talking about?" Once again he attempted to get close to her, but that only tipped her over the edge.

          "Stay away from me!" There was a flash of light, and then, before them was what looked like a green jaguar spirit…or bitbeast.

          "Wow…for all the yelling she did she has her own bitbeast?"

          "But Tyson, something looks different about that one. Let me check with Dizzi…"

          "There's no time to check, we have to stop her before she hurts someone." 

          "Right." Tyson and Max set their blade, and were about to launch them until Kai stopped them.

          "Wait. You guys don't know what you're doing, just stand back."

          "But Kai…"

          "Stand back Max! Let it rip!" The blade shot out from the launcher and charged toward the jaguar. "Dranzer, restrain her!" With another flash of light, a brilliant red phoenix rose from it's blade and stopped the cat in it's tracks, holding it back with it's talons.

          [Let me go! You should be on my side!]

          [Listen to me, my master's friends were telling the truth. They do not misuse their bitbeasts like you think.]

          [Master?! They've got you under a spell.]

          [I only call him master out of respect. Kai treats me like his partner. We work together!]

          [Lies…now let me go!]

          [I will not. If I do, you will hurt my master and his friends, and I can't let that happen.] While the two were arguing, Kai had run up to Ray, who was motionless. He pulled off the bandana and grabbed the tab she had tried to hide.

          "Ray! Return to your human form before I pull your reel! (2)" The jaguar turned its head and growled at him. She then made to attack him, but the phoenix dug its razor-sharp talons into her skin, effectively bringing her to a halt.

          [Let me go now!]

          [No. Listen to my master. He will explain everything to you if you let him.]

          [And why would I when I can just destroy you and then him?]

          [You dare threaten Kai?! You will never defeat me. And if you happen to, his friends all have bitbeasts who can stop you. You might as well give in while you are able…before master Kai sends you back.] The jaguar stopped struggling, seeing as she wasn't going to win. For, even if she did take the phoenix down, she surely wouldn't have the strength to defeat three more. 

          'Maybe they are different from the others…and if they are not, I can always make a run for it.'

          [Fine.]

          [And you will not hurt master Kai or his friends…correct?]

          [I will not harm them.] Dranzer nodded, released the jaguar, and watched the spirit return to the motionless body before returning to her own blade. It circled Ray once before returning to Kai's hand.  

          "Please let me go."

          "Will you listen to us?" She starred at the blade in his hand, which was still glowing a vibrant red, as if reminding her of what the phoenix had said, and nodded.

          "So…Kai…Ray…would one of you mind telling us what's going on?" Ray looked to Kai.

          "You know about the abbey? About me?"

          "All too well." He glanced at Rei, and back to Ray. "How long has it been?"

          "How long since what Kai?" Max questioned, completely confused.

"Only a few minutes."

"What does that mean dude?"

"Did they follow you? 

"No. At least, I'm pretty sure they didn't."

"Do you want to explain?" She looked to the others.

"I would prefer it if you did."

"Hey!" They both looked over to the rest of the gang. Rei stepped forward. "What's going on here?"

"Well, first off, Ray isn't human…at least…she wasn't." He raised his hand, telling them to not ask anything until he was done. "Tyson, remember when you came to talk to me in the abbey? When I gave you Dranzer?" The boy nodded. "In the room, you noticed all those glass tubes right? The ones with animals in them?" Another nod. "That's where Ray came from. She was one of those animals, one of the ones whose spirits were being harnessed for Biovolt."

~*~*~*~

(1) I hope you don't mind if I use the dub name instead of Takao

(2) Let's call it that for lack of a better term

SS-And there's the 'information' chapter. I don't like them that much, but they are needed.

Tym-But so early in the story? It just shows how fast you're going through this. But something about the bitbeast part doesn't sound correct. 

SS-I know. M-sen wasn't too clear when she told me about that. But I'm working with what I know and the little history lesson will continue onto the next chapter so please bear with it. 


	3. Explanation and Transportation

SS-Back. I figure, even though not too many people read this, it's for M-sen and as long as she's happy then I'll continue. 

Tym-You mean…if you don't she'll nag you, right?

SS-Correct. Can you do me a favor? If she asks me to do a story for her again…hit me…really hard.

Tym-*grabs a mallet* My pleasure.

~*~*~*~

The Spirit Within Me

Chapter 3 

"Hey!" They both looked over to the rest of the gang. Rei stepped forward. "What's going on here?"

"Well, first off, Ray isn't human…at least…she wasn't." He raised his hand, telling them to not ask anything until he was done. "Tyson, remember when you came to talk to me in the abbey? When I gave you Dranzer?" The boy nodded. "In the room, you noticed all those glass tubes right? The ones with animals in them?" Another nod. "That's where Ray came from. She was one of those animals, one of the ones whose spirits were being harnessed for Biovolt."

"But wait a minute Kai…you demolished Biovolt remember?" The others agreed with Tyson, he had indeed destroyed the abbey with Black Dranzer after returning to his team. Well, not completely, but he had made his mark. 

"It must have been one of the other abbeys then." He turned to Ray. "One of the smaller ones that are only there for experiments, right?" 

"I suppose. I didn't know there was more than one of those atrocious places…but the one I escaped from wasn't too far from here."

"As I expected. They were so bent on creating more mutant bitbeats that they had to open more areas so that they could gather more spirits."

"Hey, I'm not a mutant." Kai shrugged it off. 

          "Man…I thought that after the championships we wouldn't here about all this for a while." The others nodded in agreement. 

          "Well Tyson, I hope you didn't think that all of it was over."

          "No, but-"

          "Good. We should go back to the abbey then to get a preserver (1) for her then."

          "What's a…preserver?"

          "It'll stabilize Ray. You see, once a spirit escapes, it's unstable… especially if they were in the middle of testing. She's not a bitbeast yet, nor is she an animal. She lacks a physical form."

          "But we can feel her. She seems real to me."

          "True, but that's because she's absorbing Rei's energy Max. That's how she can take a human form. Though…" He turned to the girl. "I'm amazed you were able to run so far and spend the night here before assimilating someone." She crossed her arms.

          "Well I wasn't about to take on one of those despicable men. When you put your mind to something, you'll be amazed at what you can do."

          "Yea."

          "So basically…she's feeding off of Rei?" 

          "To put it simply, yes." Max shivered.

          "Ugh…you make it sound like she's a vampire or a leech or something."

          "Hey!"

          "Essentially that is what she is. She needs Rei's energy to stay human. But she can't help it, Ray can't stop absorbing him."

          "Yea…I'm sorry Rei. But I won't drain you or anything."

          'At least you don't think you will…' "That's also why she looks like him, talks like him, and sounds like him. The longer she absorbs him, the more a like they'll become. So don't be surprised if you can't tell them a part soon." Tyson stepped up to them and took a good look at each one.

          "Hm…that's really creepy, two Reis."

          "So the preserver will cause Ray to stop assimilating our Rei, right Kai?"

          "That's right Kenny. It'll stabilize her and she'll start becoming her own person. Her hair, eyes, voice, they'll all change…unless she actually looks that way." Everyone nodded, finally understanding the situation. "So we better find a way back to that abbey right away-"

          "What's the hurry? I don't know about you guys, but I wanna learn more about Ray." Max agreed with his equally energetic friend.

          "Yea, it's kind of cool to have a girl around. Especially since she's just like our Rei." 

          "You don't mind, do you Kai?"

          "Well, no. But it's best if we get there first though-"

          "Well, if you don't mind Kai…I am kind of hungry." Tyson cheered.

          "All right! Something else we have in common! Come on Ray, let me introduce you to the kitchen!" He grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside, with Max and Kenny in tow. Which left Kai and Rei in the yard.

          "We really should be heading to the abbey. They can eat and play games after she's stable." Rei nudged him.    

          "Come on Kai, she hungry. And no doubt Tyson wouldn't mind snacking either." He began walking in. "It won't take long, and I don't mind the absorbing thing. I mean, it doesn't hurt, and it's not like she'll drain me dry." With that, he entered the house, leaving Kai alone.

          'That's what you think.' He checked his watch. That whole encounter had only been a few minutes, Rei was right, they had plenty of time. But he didn't want to risk anything. Especially when Rei was the one in danger. 'I'll just have to push them along like I always do. Hmph…nothing out of the ordinary.' And he walked in, closing the door firmly behind him. 

~*~

          "Oh man…I'm stuffed." Ray stated as she put her napkin down and took a sip of her tea. "But I guess that's a good thing."

          "You bet it is!" Tyson exclaimed. He was still eating some of the chips that Rei had brought, but overall, he was done.

          "Now that you guys are done stuffing your faces, can we think about getting the preserver?" Max swallowed the muffin he was chewing and thought about that.

          "But…we don't even know where the abbey is?" Kai glanced at Ray.

          "That's where she comes in." The girl held her cup close to her mouth as she tried to remember what she wanted to forget. 

          "You do remember where the abbey is, right?" She turned to the boy next to her, still thinking.

          "I'm pretty sure I do Rei. I mean, if we passed by the area I could probably lead you there."

          "You don't know the exact location?" Ray looked at Kenny, who was ready and waiting for directions. 

          "Well, it was so dark, and I was running so fast, I'm afraid I can't recall…the precise spot." He glanced at the keyboard.

          "That's ok. It can't be too far." He began typing. "And it's probably well hidden, among trees or something."

          "I definitely remember trees."

          "That's a start."

          "But still, it could be pretty far away."

          "How could it be Kai? She can't run that far."

          "You're forgetting what she is Tyson. Her spirit is a jaguar, it would probably be no trouble for her to sprint through a forest without losing her breath." She nodded and placed her cup on the table.

          "He's right. The abbey could be miles away. I should have paid attention to where I was going." Rei put his hand on her shoulder.

          "Don't worry about it. If the abbey is around here, I'm sure Dizzi can find it. And no one's blaming you. I mean you wanted to get away from that horrible place as quick as you could, and you had no idea you'd ever need to go back. So don't beat yourself up over it." She smiled, and started thinking again, straining her mind for anything specific.

          "Hm…" 

          "It's no big deal Ray, Dizzi will find it." Tyson said and continued to scarf down the rest of the chips.

          "I thought you said you were full."

          "I never said that Kai." The captain sighed and shook his head.

          "…You'd give an arm and a leg for a bag of chips, wouldn't you?"

          'Leg?' Ray glanced at her ankle and saw that there was a noticeable, red, gash above it. A spark went off in her head. "That's it!" Everyone looked at her. 

          "What's it, Ray?"

          "Leg! My leg! I remember last night I tripped over a really sharp rock and scraped my ankle!"

          "Ok…but there are hundreds of sharp rocks."

          "No, no…that's not it Max! Because I tripped, I crashed into a sign. The words were smudgy, but I remember most of it. At the very top was the word "haunted"…it looked as if it was written by someone. Under that was some word that was crossed out, but it started with a 'm'. And the word below that was 'woods'." They thought about it as Kenny typed. "Does…does that help?"

          "Maybe. I'm searching for any forests or clearings that begin with a 'm', hold on."

          "So…it's not the 'haunted woods'?" Rei shook his head.

          "If you're right, one of the Biovolt workers must have written that to scare kids away."

          "Oh." 

          "I've got it Chief! The 'Midori (2) Woods'."

          "Good job Dizzi. Now we just need to find it…there! All right, it's not too far from here, but it'll take too long if we walk…"

          "Which means we need a ride!"

          "Brilliant deduction Sherlock…"

          "Ok, ok, I'll call Mr. Dickinson and arrange a ride." He went over to the phone and dialed the number.

          "All right, we got a plan…and until he comes…we can eat!"

          "Yea and play video games!" With that, Max and Tyson ran off, snagging a bag of popcorn on their way to his room. 

"But we still have to find out where in the woods is the abbey." Rei smiled and patted Kai's arm reassuringly. 

          "Don't worry about it pal, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Kai couldn't help but smile…a little. He had to admire his optimism; after all, it's what made him who he was. 

          "Yea, why worry about it now? Just relax Kai, you worry too much." His smile broadened a bit more. 

          'I guess it's not too bad having two neko-jins around. So it's a good thing Rei was late and that Tyson was actually on time. Ugh…thank goodness she didn't assimilate Tyson.' He didn't want to think about it, so he relaxed, for now.

~*~

          It had been about fifteen minutes or so since Kenny had called Mr. Dickinson, who had obviously run into some trouble, but the gang didn't seem to notice. Tyson and Max were still playing video games, Ray was helping Kenny locate the abbey on Kai's request, and the captain was sitting across from them. 

          'We're losing time…we have to hurry up.' 

          "Kai?" The phoenix looked over to see Rei take a seat next to him. "Deep in thought?"

          "Yea."

          "About what?" He debated whether or not he should tell him, and decided against it.

          "Nothing that would concern you Rei." A small frown appeared on his once neutral features, Kai sighed inwardly. "Rei…listen."

          "…Yea?"

          "I can't tell you everything, but you should know that our timing is very important."

          "Uh…you lost me there Kai."

          "Ok…forget about that. Rei, you know that things are going to get a little dangerous, right?"

          "Of course. I mean, it seems like everything we do puts us in danger."

          "Well, you're in more danger then the rest of us because your energy is supporting you and Ray. So it's important that you tell me when you feel tired, ok?"

          "Tell you when I'm tired?" He knew it sounded odd…very odd…but the stern look in his captain's eyes told him that this obviously meant something to him. "Ok. If it means that much to you." Kai nodded in gratitude. It did mean a lot to him to know that even though the tournaments were all over, Rei still respected him and took his orders seriously. 

          "All right!" Both of the BladeBreakers looked over to Kenny.

          "What is it?" Ray smiled wide enough to show her fangs.

          "We found it! We think we've found the precise spot. Now all we need is some transportation." As if on cue, they heard the familiar horn of the van from outside. Rei grinned.

          "Right on time." He, his double, and Kenny went out to greet Mr. Dickinson, leaving Kai the responsibility to get the other two members of his team.

          "Tyson! Max! Come on, Mr. Dickinson is here! Let's go!" Hearing no response, he sighed and went inside. Meanwhile, the others were calling seats and filling in Mr. D. on the situation.

          "And you're telling me that this young lady is an actual bitbeast?" Kenny shook his head.

          "Um…no. She's not a bitbeast." 

          "Well you can't expect me to believe that she's a jaguar."

          "She's not." Said Rei.

"Yea actually, I'm kind of in the middle. Not an animal, but not yet a bitbeast. Or at least, that's the way Kai put it." He nodded, satisfied with that answer.

"All right then. Say, speaking of Kai…where is he?" The three looked around until they spotted their blue-haired captain dragging the two energetic teenagers behind him. 

"Let me go!" Shouted Tyson. "I can walk on my own."

"I'm sure you can, but probably not fast enough."

"Well I can walk faster than him, let me go instead!"

"We're here anyway, so get in." He practically threw the two in, closing the door behind him. "Ok, lets go." They decided not to argue and took a seat. The engine started again and they were finally on their way. 

~*~*~*~

(1) How original, right?

(2) 'Green Woods' Not too fancy, but it'll do.

SS-*Tym hits SS with the mallet* NOT YET!

Tym-…it was a practice shot.

SS-Argh…

Tym-Uh…RnR plz! *runs away*


	4. Finding our way

SS-Let's just get into this quickly before I forget what I wanted to write. Same disclaimer as always, we don't own BB.

Tym-Why are you rushing through this?        

SS-I don't know. I guess because there's nothing to say. Oh, but I do want to thank the reviewers. No matter how many stories you write, it's always nice to get reviews. 

Tym-You're telling me. It makes the author happy and makes them write faster. Amazing lil inventions, aren't they?

**Warning**: On M-sen's request…I'm doing my best to add in bits of Kai/Rei here and there. I suppose I can change the ending to make it seem like they're more than friends as appose to my original concept of brotherly love/adoration. I'm not the best when it comes to the deep love stuff; but fluff and shmut (Pointless or not), I think I can do. 

~*~*~*~ 

The Spirit Within Me

Chapter 4 __

~*~*~*~

(10:00 AM)  

"Are we there yet?" The gang had been on the road for about half and hour now.

          "No Tyson, we're not." And that boy's repetitive question was irritating everyone except Ray, who was sleeping.

          "Are you sure, Kai?" Max leaned over to Rei and whispered to him,

          "Is Kai ever wrong?" Rei shook his head.

          "Yes I'm sure, Tyson!" The two sighed and tried to stay out of things.

          "Ok." Kenny was in the front seat with Mr. Dickinson, plotting the course and giving him directions based on why Ray remembered. Tyson was sitting next to Max and Rei and his look-a-like were across from them. As for Kai, he was sitting behind the neko-jins…away from Tyson. 

          "How about we sing a song?"

          "No." Kai said simply.

          "Play 'I Spy'?"

          "No."

          "How about the license plate game?"

          "NO!" The sudden outburst jolted the once sleeping Ray, who was now looking for the source of the disturbance.

          "Who's shouting?"

          "Him!" Tyson pointed to Kai while the captain motioned to him. She sighed.

          "Are you ok, Ray?"

          "I'm fine, I just didn't realize how long this trip was going to be. It seemed a lot faster last night.

          "That's because you sprinted here with your unbelievable bitbeast speed! We can't match that unless we flew a jet there."

          "…Why didn't we?" Kenny looked back.

          "I don't think the BBA has a jet. And even if they did, it's easier to locate the abbey if we're on the ground."

          "Argh…" She growled, which caught everyone's attention.

          "That must come from the jaguar in you, because I've never heard Rei growl like that." Rei agreed with Kai.

          "But we have heard him purr!" Max chimed in.

          "Ok guys."

          "And we've seen him bear him fangs!"

          "She gets it guys."

          "And I swear he hissed at an opponent once."

          "Enough all ready!" Max and Tyson retreated to their seats.

          "He probably got that from Ray."

          "Or Kai." Kai glared at the other bluenette.

          "OK…Rei gets growling from Ray and glaring from Kai."

          "Yup." The Chinese blader and his captain sighed. It was going to be a long ride. 

~*~

(11:30 AM)

          "Are we there yet?"

          "Yea, are we there yet?" Ray couldn't help but ask with Tyson. If she were running, she could have been there by now.

          "I'm sorry kids, but finding this place is no easy task. Even with Dizzi's help." Everyone sighed.

          'Yes, it has been a long time.' He checked his watch. They had been stuck in this van since 9:30 AM, which meant that Ray had been absorbing his teammate's energy for almost two hours and thirty minutes. 'We've hit the halfway mark. We have to get that preserver. We're running out of time.'

          "Hey Kai?" Kai looked up from where he was starring and met two pairs of concerned, golden eyes. "You ok, man?"

          "Yea, are you tired?" He couldn't get over how alike they were. He could hardly tell their voices apart.

          "I'm fine. Just-" Rei finished his sentence.

          "Thinking, right?" Kai smirked and nodded. Rei then turned to his double. "He does that a lot."

          "I've noticed." They both ducked back into their seats and enjoyed the silence, slowly dozing off. Both Max and Tyson had fallen asleep from boredom about fifteen minutes ago, and the rest of the gang have been reveling in the peace ever since. Kai starred at the window again, thinking about their situation again.

          'We should be arriving soon. When we get there, we should split up, it'll be easier to find the potion that way. But what do we do once Ray has taken it? Where will she go?' He was interrupted from his thoughts again when the engine started acting up. 'That can't be good.' With a few more clanks and stutter stops, the van came to an abrupt halt. 

          "Ah!" The sudden stop caused both Tyson and Max to crash into Mr. Dickinson's seat. Across from them, both neko-jins' quick reflexes prevented them from ramming into Kenny's seat. And of course, Kai had heard the sounds beforehand so he avoided the collision. 

          "Is everyone all right?" 

          "I'm ok." 

          "That's because you used me as a shield Chief."

          "We're both ok."

          "I'm fine."   

          "What about the two behind me? I heard them hit the seat." Rei looked over, they were rubbing their head but aside from that, they seemed all right.

          "They're ok Mr. D. What happened?" Max got up and looked out the window.

          "Yea, did we hit something?" 

          "No, we didn't. It sounds like the engine went dead."

          "Then what are we gonna do?"

          "I could call someone to pick us up-"

          "No." Kai said, cutting Mr. Dickinson off. "That'll take too long. Dizzi, how much further is it?"

          "By my calculation, about another mile or two."

          "Then we'll walk." Tyson jumped out of his seat.

          "Wait a minute, walk?! That'll take just as long!"

          "Actually, it will be faster. It took us about two hours to get this far, and if we start now, we should reach the abbey in an hour."

          "Yea, if we run all the way! Let's just call for-"

          "There's no time!" Rei grabbed Kai's arm.

          "Calm down Kai, what's the rush?" As much as he wanted to answer him and shut Tyson up, he didn't want to worry them. He just had to persuade them to walk. As if reading Kai's mind, Ray looked out the window.

          "Hey guys, this place looks familiar."

          "You mean we've been going in circles?!"

          "No Max, I mean I think we're close to the abbey." They all starred at her. "I remember this circle of trees, we mustn't be too far away. I think we can walk there." Kai started to walk out of the van.

          "Than it's settled, come on, let's go." Everyone started filing out of the broken down vehicle and began walking.

          "Hey Mr. Dickinson, aren't you coming?"

          "No Kenny, I think I'll stay here. You boys and girls go on ahead."

          "Why?"

          "When you all get back here, you'll need a way to get home. I'll wait for the car and drive to the abbey to wait for you."

          "Well all right. Are you sure you don't want one of us to stay with you?"

          "I'm a big boy Kenny, I'll be fine." Tyson threw his arm around the Chief's shoulder and smiled.

          "Don't worry, Mr. D. can take care of himself. Come on, we better get going before Kai starts shouting at us."

          "Ok."

          "Good luck, and be careful." He waved and began dialing on his cell phone, watching as the team disappeared behind the brush.

~*~

(12:15 PM)

          "Are we there yet?" 

          "Tyson…"

          "Well I thought we were almost there ok?" Ray tried not to notice the boy's remarks, hoping that they don't realize that she had lied about recognizing the circle of trees before.

          "Tyson's right, I thought we were pretty close."

          "Well, I was running pretty fast, I'm not exactly sure how far I was from the abbey when I saw that clearing." Kenny checked his map.

          "Oh don't worry, we're not too far, we'll make it there soon." Ray inwardly sighed, glad that Kenny was backing her up. The Chief was leading them through the forest, with Rei, his double, Max and Tyson close behind him. Kai was bringing up the rear. Making sure that nobody wandered off. The only time he had gone up was to ask Rei if he was getting tired about ten minutes ago, but he had replied saying that he felt fine.

          "This is getting boring…" Ray said. "How about we play 'I Spy'?" Max, Rei, and Kenny agreed with her.

          "Oh, when she suggests it everyone agrees…"

          "Ok. Let's see." She looked around, trying to find something good. "All right, I spy with my golden eyes, something that's…red." The four BladeBreakers started searching for something red, calling out their answers when something caught their eye.

          "A bird?"

          "Nope."

          "Rei's bandana?"

          "No."

          "Your bandana?"

          "My bandana isn't red."

          "Yes it is." She looked up to find that hers was red too. 'When did that happen?' 

          "Well, that's not it."

          "Um…Kai's shirt has a red outline…"

          "Nu uh. But you're getting warmer."

          "So it's something Kai's wearing…" They all looked at Kai, who had just crossed his arms.

          "What am I? A circus attraction?"

          "Well, since you said it…" Kai's glare immediately silenced Tyson.

          "His beyblade has red on it."

          "That's a good guess, but I can't even see his blade." The others kept looking. And Kai kept glaring…and that's when Rei noticed it.

          "Oh, I know! His eyes! Kai has red eyes!" Ray clapped.

          "That's right! I guess we think alike, huh?" 

          "Aw…not fair."

          "Ok Tyson, you can do the next one then." He grinned.  
          Yea! Ok, I spy with my little eye," He looked up while he walked, surprisingly not running into anything. "Something that's blue-"

          "The sky." Everyone stopped and looked at Kai.

          "Hey, how'd you know?"

          "It was obvious." Everyone laughed, except for Tyson, and they kept walking.

~*~

(12:40 PM)

          They had given up on 'I Spy' a while ago when most of the things to spy were already done, and were now walking in silence, which Kai enjoyed. Ray, on the other hand, didn't like the silence too much. 

          "How about another game?" Max looked over.

          "Like what?"

          "Mm…" She snapped her fingers. "Telephone!" The others nodded, admitting that it was a good game and that they could play it while they were walking.

          "But…we only have one cell phone with us." Ray learned to ignore Tyson's remarks and began to think of a starting subject. 

          "Ok. I got one." She ran over to Rei and whispered it into his ear. "Kai likes…" He raised his eyebrow. "Just go along with it! Oh, and don't forget to add something!" 

          "Ok…" He rubbed the back of his neck while he thought of something else to add on. Then he went over to Kenny and continued the sentence. "Kai likes…malls and…" Kenny thought for a while, and then walked back to Max and whispered his part.

          "Kai likes malls and…uh…animals because…" Max hid a chuckle from the sentence fragment and went over to Tyson. 

          'He's going to get a kick out of this.' "Kai likes uh…what was it? Oh yea, claws and uh…" 'What animal did Kenny say?' "Uh…claws and tigers because…because they remind him of Rei and…" Tyson almost couldn't contain his laughter. This was perfect. He practically skipped over to Kai and told him the finished sentence.

          "No way. I'm not joining this ridiculous game."

          "Aw come on Kai, you'll love this one…"

          "No. Thanks."

          "Fine…I'll just say it out loud then." He cleared his throat. "Ok. Kai likes claws and tigers because they remind him of Rei…" He pointed to the BladeBreaker to clarify which person he was talking about. "And…uh…oh yea! And he thinks he's hot!" Rei slapped his forehead, Kenny hid his chuckle and himself behind his laptop and Ray scratched her cheek. 

          "That's not the way I thought it'd go…" Max laughed, and Tyson joined him. 

          "Tyson…" Kai said in a dangerously low voice.

          "Uh oh!" He bolted, with Kai not too far behind him. "Why are you mad at me?! We all contributed to that sentence!"

          "I know how the game works! You added in that last part!" Tyson rounded a tree and soon they were circling around the others.

          "Do you think we should tell them that those weren't even the right words?"

          "No way Chief, that's part of the game."

          "You're only saying that Max because you're the one that told Tyson the wrong thing." He grinned sheepishly at Ray. Meanwhile, the chase continued. 

"It's your fault!" He said, hiding behind Max. 

          "My fault?!"

          "Yea! If you had joined in, you could have changed it!" Kai darted between everyone and headed for Tyson, but he sprinted away and ended up behind Rei.

          "Tyson! Don't get me involved in this!"

          "Stop hiding Tyson!"

          "Come on Kai…it was all in good fun. And you wouldn't hurt Rei, would you?" Not wanting her double to get hurt by Kai's fury, Ray used her incredible speed to grab Rei and get out…leaving nothing but air between Kai and Tyson.

          "Shoot…"

~*~

(1:00 PM)

          It was quiet once again, as Tyson seemed to have learned his lesson. But Ray was still bored, so when Kai walked over to Kenny to see how much farther the abbey was; she motioned Rei and Max over.

          "Since we're almost there, how about we play one last game?" Rei and Max nodded while Tyson tried to hear what they were saying.

          "Did you say game? Can I play?"

          "No. Kai will just hit you again."

          "Aww…can I at least listen?"

          "Fine."

          "So what's the game?"

          "Two line vocabulary (1)." The guys looked at each other, and then back to her.

          "How do you play that?"

          "I saw it on a show in Tyson's house. Here's how it works. We're going to engage in a conversation with Kai, but you and Max can only say two different sentences to him. Nothing else."

          "What about you?"

          "I can say whatever. That way I can keep the conversation going." Max grinned.  
          "Sounds like fun." Rei smirked at him.

          "You mean, sounds like a fun way to annoy Kai." Max nodded.

          "Can I help too?" She looked at Tyson's pleading eyes.

          "Um…a little, but don't give it away."

          "Yea!"

          "Hey!" They all looked over to Kai. "Come on, we found the way, we're almost there!"

          "Ok!" She shouted back. "Ok…Max, you can only say…what's that, and you got to be kidding. And Rei, you can only say…is that a good thing, and uh…"

          "I'm getting hungry!" They looked over at Tyson.

          "Ok, fine. Let the games begin!" They all walked over to Kai, who eyed them suspiciously.

          "What?"

          "Nothing." They walked a little further, and Ray started. "So, Kai… what are you thinking about?"

          "It's none of your concern, Ray."

          "You got to be kidding."

          "Why would I be kidding?"

          "Is that a good thing?"

          "What's a good thing?" Tyson stepped in to bring it home.

          "That you're kidding." He didn't respond to that, he just walked faster. They exchanged glances, and Max went forward.

          "What was that?"

          "What was what?"

          "I'm getting hungry." Kai turned to Rei.

          "But we ate before we left."

          "You got to be kidding!" He turned back to Max.

          "Why would I be kidding? Uh…de ja vu."

          "Is that a good thing?" 

          "Argh…" He stopped and looked at both of them. "I don't know what you two are up to but you had better stop it." Rei looked to Max and pointed at Kai.

          "…Is that a good thing?"

          "Argh!" He walked away and the two glanced back at Ray and Tyson. Max went up again. He kicked a rock into the neighboring bushes and gasped. 

          "What's that?!" He jumped and grabbed Kai's arm.

          "Huh?" Rei grabbed Kai's other arm…pretending to be scared.

          "…I'm getting hungry."

          "You two get off of me! It was just a bug or something."

          "You got to be kidding!"

          "Is that a good thing?!" Tyson stepped up.

          "I don't think so…" Ray kicked another rock into the bushes. 

          "Oh no…there's another one!"

          "What WAS that?!" Max ran behind Kai, soon followed by Rei.

          "Is that a-" 

          "No Rei, it's probably not a good thing!"

          "You've got to-"

          "No, I'm not kidding Max!" He faced them. "What's wrong with you two!?" They both shrugged.

          "I'm sure it's nothing you guys." They turned to Ray. "If it's anything, it's probably a rabbit of a deer."

          "What's that?!" He motioned to something near Kenny and ran over to him, grabbing his shoulder in the process. "You got to be kidding!" Ray and Tyson hid their laughter as Rei went up and grabbed Max's arm.

          "…I'm getting hungry…" The blond looked shocked.

          "You got to be kidding!"

          "Is that a good thing?" Kai shook his head and headed for both of them. He didn't look happy.

          "What's that?" Max asked. Kenny looked at them as if they were crazy. 

          "Guys…that's just Kai." Rei turned to Max.

          "Is that a good thing?" He looked back. 

          "You got to be kidding!" 

          "You guys are driving me insane!" 

          "Eep!" They said in unison and ran off in different directions. He set after Max first, seeing as he was laughing so much he couldn't run too fast. "We'll stop, we'll stop!" After getting a hold of Max, he turned to look for Rei, and spotted him leaning against a tree, breathing heavily. Kai's anger vanished.

          "Rei…" Max was still laughing, but he had to warn his partner in crime that the phoenix had seen him.

          "Heh heh…Rei…get moving-ooff!" Kai pushed the hyper teen into Tyson's arms and ran over to Rei.

          "Rei, Rei are you all right?" Said boy looked over at him.

          "Yea, I'm fine. Just ran a little too much and laughed a little too hard." Kai didn't believe him for a second.

          "Yea right. I've seen you dash across the street without losing your breath." He checked his watch. They only had about an hour and a half left. 'No wonder he's exhausted…and that little chase didn't help much.' "Come on Rei, we got to keep going."

          "All right." They had calmed down eventually, and after a few minutes, Kenny stopped. Tyson looked around.

          "What's up, Chief?" He turned to them.

          "We're here guys." He pulled back some branches to reveal a small, stone building. It resembled a church, but something told them that nothing about it was holy. Ray shivered as they approached it.

          "Yea, this is the place. Eh…I'm not too fond of it." Kai nodded.

          "All the more reason to hasten our search. Come on." He ushered them to follow him into the creepy castle; they reluctantly followed. Rei shivered and he felt as if something passed through him. 

          'Why do I not have a good feeling about this?'

~*~*~*~

(1) It's a game on the show "Who's Line is it Anyway?" It's really funny ^_^ So I don't take credit for that either. 

SS-There we go. After some wandering, laughing, and annoying Kai, they finally reached the abbey.

Tym-That was fast. The story's almost over!

SS-Well, I never planned on making this story long.

Tym-True.

SS-And if you're wondering why I keep putting the time up, it'll be explained soon. And…it will make sense. ~_^ Oh, and please review. It'd make me feel better. 

Tym-And I wouldn't have to listen to her ask me 'do you think they like the story?' Ashes dudes and dudettes! 


	5. Running out of Time

SS-Hey everyone! ^-^

Tym-You sound like you're in a good mood.

SS-Yup Yup! It was M-sen's birthday on the 16th.

Tym-…But today's the 20th. 

SS-I know that! But we had a great slumber party. And part of my gift…is to think of a good idea for another Rei/Kai fic. Got any- *Tym hits her with a mallet* OW! TYM WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!

Tym-You told me to hit you really hard if she asked you to do another fic for her.

SS-Well…this doesn't count. I mean I can't turn down a birthday request.

Tym-Yea yea…*cough* push over *cough*

SS- v-v# Anyway…any suggestions would be nice. 

Tym-Wait…how do you know the readers won't just give you ideas for stories they want?

SS-I don't. But as long as it's Rei/Kai…it's fine with me. It's like killing two birds with one stone. ~_^

~*~*~*~

The Spirit Within Me

Chapter Five __

WARNING: Lots of arguing, yelling, minor Rei and Kai-bashing/insulting (Which I don't like but needs to be added in), and slight cursing near the end. Oh yea, and same disclaimer as always. 

~*~*~*~

"We're here guys." He pulled back some branches to reveal a small, stone building. It resembled a church, but something told them that nothing about it was holy. Ray shivered as they approached it.

          "Yea, this is the place. Eh…I'm not too fond of it." Kai nodded.

          "All the more reason to hasten our search. Come on." He ushered them to follow him into the creepy castle; they reluctantly followed. Rei shivered and he felt as if something passed through him. 

          'Why do I not have a good feeling about this?'

(1:30 PM)    

They entered the abbey cautiously, looking around apprehensively as the sound of their footsteps echoed off of the stonewalls. Kai was in the lead, followed by Ray, who kept her gaze on the floor.

          'Just get the preserver and get out. In, out, simple. We'll be back to eating muffins and playing games in no time.' Kai glanced back at the gang, checking to make sure they were all right. He noticed how tense Ray was, but figured that it was normal for her to feel that way.

          'She must hate this place as much as I despise Biovolt. Well, I want to get this over with just as much as she does.' He looked at his watch again; they had about an hour left. His eyes wandered to the other neko-jin, who was bringing up the rear. He was keeping up, but barely. 'He can't take much more. This last hour will really test him, and this is one test I really wish he didn't have to go through. We better hurry up.'

          "Um guys? Someone does know the way, right?"

          "I'm pretty sure I remember Max. Don't worry, we'll be out before you know it." Ray answered cheerfully. "So don't worry-ow!" Ray rubbed her forehead as she backed away from whatever she bumped into. "Kai? What's up?" She had indeed walked straight into Kai, who had stopped abruptly. 

          "We got a bridge to cross." Everyone moved to see that they had come across a fork in the road. The BladeBreakers' captain glanced back at Ray. "Left or right?" She stepped up and looked down both passages. Each less inviting then the other. 

          "Uh…" Tyson scratched the back of his neck.

          "You said you remembered the way, right?" She bit her nail nervously.

          "Well…I…I know I came this way when I escaped. And I chose the…the right! Yes. I chose the right side because I'm right handed!" She made to sprint down the right corridor until a hand grabbed her shoulder.

"What?"

          "If you came down the right, then we would have to go up the left." She grinned sheepishly.

          "…Right." The others chuckled lightly and headed for the left, following Ray's lead. Kai looked over his shoulder to find Rei leaning against the cold brick wall. 

          "Rei." The raven hair blader glanced up and caught his captain's gaze. "Come on," He walked over to him and grabbed his wrist gently. "We have to hurry." The other merely nodded and trailed behind him, fighting to keep his eyes open as he went. 

          'Man, what's wrong with me? I've never felt this tired before. Well, there was that one time when Mr. Dickinson was lecturing us about training more and playing less. Oh…and the day after that when Kai took Mr. D's advice and had us doing battle techniques until 2 AM. Hm…maybe this isn't too weird after all. I mean, how often do the BladeBreakers go on an adventure to help a run-a-way bitbeast?' He sighed as they continued down the dark hall. 

'Still, shouldn't the others be tired too? They were the other times. Plus I slept in today. If anything, I should be just as hyper as Max. Maybe it has something to do with Ray and her assimilating me. Or maybe I'm just overreacting. That's probably it.' They were out within seconds, and back to the now regular cobblestone path. 

"Ok, it should be smooth sailing from here on in. I only remember one split like that on my way out, so let's go!" She pumped her fist into the air and they were on their way again.

(1:45 PM)

          "Only one split huh?" After a few more minutes, the group had run into another fork in the road. This time there were three paths to take.

          "Well…when I said one split I meant one two way split." She threw her hands behind her head. "So technically, I wasn't lying." She grinned as the others sighed. Kenny was first to recover.

          "So you mean you don't know which way will get us to the room with the preservers?" She turned back to look at the roads.

          "Uh…I know it's not the middle. I remember turning a lot, so it can't be that one."

          "But that means we still have two directions." Kai walked to the front, letting go of Rei's hand as he went.

          "Thanks for stating the obvious Maxie." He quickly sized up the situation and gave out his directions. "All right. We need to find that tonic as soon as we can, so let's split up. Tyson, Max, Kenny, you guys go that way." He stated and pointed to the hall on the far left. "I'll take these two this way. If you find the preserver, come and get us right away. We'll come get you guys if we find it first."

          "You talk as if this was a game."

          "You can think of it that way Tyson, just make sure that you don't lose." The Dragoon carrier saluted him.

          "Yes captain, my captain." He linked his arm with Max's and jogged towards the corridor. "We're on it!" Max tripped a little and grabbed Kenny's arm as Tyson continued to yank them from Kai's glare range. 

          "Come on Chief! If I'm getting dragged into this, then you're coming too!" They were gone in seconds; their clacking footsteps disappearing not too long after. Kai sighed, and turned his attention to the other two. Ray was looking down the right hall and Rei was leaning against the wall again, his golden eyes disappearing and reappearing behind his eyelids. He rushed over to him.

          "Rei?" He held his shoulders in his hands and shook his softly. "Come on…wake up…" He kept his voice low, knowing what would happen should he raise it. Training Tyson for months taught him that yelling didn't exactly help. Though that didn't keep him from yelling at him, but Rei wasn't Tyson, and upsetting him wasn't one of the things Kai wanted to do to him. "Rei." The other turned her head.

          "Are you talking to me Kai?" He shook his head.

          "This Rei won't wake up even though it's time to go." He kept on shaking him until he could see those beautiful, golden eyes again. 

          "Hm…" 

          "We have to get going. Which means it's not time for a cat nap." Rei shook his head a few times before letting go of the stonewall and following Kai. Ray sensed his weariness and stood in front of the captain.

          "Hey Kai? Why don't we rest for a bit? I mean…the preserver isn't going anywhere, and it looks like Rei could use a little break." He didn't pay attention to her opinion and kept going. 

          "No, we don't have time." She jogged up to him.

          "We have plenty of time! And maybe Tyson and the others will find it first. Maybe we don't need to be rushing things-"

          "Yea? And maybe Rei will die!" She stopped.

          "…Kai, you don't have to say things like that." He turned to face her.

          "Maybe I need to if it'll get you to understand! Haven't you figured it out? Rei's running out of time, so the sooner we get that preserver the sooner he'll be out of danger!" She looked to her double; he did look a little paler, and awfully tired, and he wasn't as cheery as he was back in the forest. 

          'How long has he been like that? He wasn't like that before. Is it because of me? Am I draining him? And if I am, and Kai noticed…why didn't he tell me?! Why didn't he tell everyone?!' She furrowed her brows and glared at the bluenette. "Why didn't you tell us?! Did you think we wouldn't notice?"

          "You didn't." He took hold of Rei's hand again and continued walking.

          "Well it's not like we wouldn't have noticed him die! You should have said something! Then at least we would have hurried like you told us. I mean, Tyson and the others might not be taking this seriously, what if they aren't looking?!"

          "They are. They might not take many things seriously, but this time they will."

          "How can you be sure?"

          "I can't." They were confronted with a hall full of doors, and they would find the potion behind one of them. They proceeded to check them all, Ray taking one side and Kai the other.

          "How much time do we have left before…before…you know?" He silently opened one door only to find a library.

          "About half an hour." She slammed the door she had opened and looked down the long corridor.

          "Only?! Why didn't you say so?!" She picked up the pace, slamming door after door as she found nothing.

          "Quiet! We won't find anything if you let them know we're here!"

          "It's your fault for not telling us! If you did then maybe we-"

          "Would you stop with the maybe's?! What's done is done!"

          "Yea well, _perhaps_ if you had told us we wouldn't be in such a tight spot!" She practically threw the last door against the frame; which resulted in a thunderous crash that echoed off the walls. An eerie silence followed it. And now was the time Rei decided to speak up.

          "Ray, calm down." His voice was quiet and weak. "Kai was only trying to protect us. He didn't want to worry anyone…that's what he does. It's how he looks after the team." More silence. After a few seconds, Ray looked up.

          "What?"

          "…I hear something. Footsteps…someone's coming!" They tensed as the sound reached their ears. "We have to get out of here!" She turned to go back the way they came until Kai grabbed her shoulder.

          "No, we have to keep going. This way!" He led them to one of the larger doors on his side and quickly got them all in.

          "I was sure the sound came from over here."

          "Maybe they hid somewhere." 

          "Let's check." The trio held their breath, praying that the guards would pass over them. Their footsteps stopped when they came to their door.

          "What about this one?"

          "No, not that one. Queenie would kill us."

          "Oh, right." As they moved on the sound of their steps disappeared, and they all sighed in relief.

          "That was close."

          "You're telling me." She agreed with her double and then turned to Kai, who was staring straight ahead. "Sorry about all that Kai." He didn't answer. "I was just upset that you kept something like that from us." Still no response.

          "Don't worry Ray, after you've been with Kai as long as I have, you'll realize that it happens often. But he means well by it."

          "Ok. Do I also have to get used to his silent responses?"

          "Yea."

          "Guys…shut up."

          "You have to get used to that too." She giggled.

          "I mean it! Look." Both neko-jins finally turned their attention to what Kai had been looking at and gasped.

~*~

SS-…Nope….it would be too mean to leave it here. 

Tym-Never stopped you before.

SS-Well, it's a little too short for my liking anyway.

Tym-Of course you say that, you're not the one doing the typing. 

~*~

(2:00 PM) Meanwhile…

"Man…we must have checked like, a hundred doors by now. How do we know it's even here?" Tyson complained as he shut another door.

          "Well, we don't. Remember, it could be in one of the rooms down the hall that Kai and the others took."

          "Then why don't we just go help them?"

          "Because it might not be there. It might be behind one of our doors." 

          "Aww man." He gently banged his forehead against the wood. "Chief, isn't there any quicker way of checking?" The boy kept typing.

          "Sorry Tyson, but without a map of the interior there's no way I can. I guess you guys have to keep looking."

          "Argh…"

          "Come on buddy, it's for Ray. And our Rei too."

          "Yea I know." He lifted his head and walked further down the hall, continuing his laborious task. Max closed another door before turning to Kenny.

          "Hey you guys…I was thinking about what Kai said back at Tyson's house."

          "Yea?"

          "What about it dude?"

          "Well, when I said Ray sounded like a vampire, Kai said that that was basically what she was. She's absorbing Rei's energy to stay human." The blue haired boy shut another door.

          "So?"

          "So…nobody has enough energy to support two people…not even us, and we go through two or three bags of candy every week. There's no way Rei can last too long…what happens when he runs out?"

          "Hm…I never thought of that."

          "Well, Ray said that she wouldn't drain him dry."

          "Yea, but Kai said that she couldn't stop it. What if she does? What would happen to our Rei?" Tyson grabbed another handle but didn't turn it. 

          "What would happen to him?" Kenny continued typing.

          "I'm sure she'd know when to stop. She doesn't want to hurt him.

          "But Kai said that she can't stop! He said that it's not something she could control!"

          "Calm down Max, you're talking as if she's killing him."

          "But…isn't that what she's doing, Chief? Draining the life out of him?" The clicking and clacking of keys ceased.

          "It couldn't be….that couldn't…could it?"

          "Anything seems possible Chief." Dizzy stated. "But maybe you boys should stop assuming and find that preserver." Tyson nodded.

          "Dizzy's right. Whatever's true, Ray needs that stuff to become her own person." He opened the door only to find a staircase.

          "But…what if she really is killing him? What if Rei's dying right now? He did seem pale when we entered this weird place."

          "I think we all felt a little weird when we came here Max. But if she is draining him…then we got to hurry and get that preserver thing."

          "Yea, ok." So they continued searching, their pace a little quicker with the thoughts of their friend running through their head.

~*~

          Rei was the first to get over the initial shock. "Oh man…" Kai nodded.

          "This is definitely the place." The female neko-jin stayed silent as they walked further into the room. Large green tubes were lined up on each side; all of them contained a different animal. They kept going. Ray cringed when the animals were shocked every few seconds and a little whisps of…something floated out of them and was sucked down into the machine below it. She unknowingly began moving closer to the guys, fear slowly building inside of her. "Now we just have to find that stupid preserver and we can get out of this stinking abbey."

          "Well if you don't appreciate the wonders of my 'stupid preserver', then I suppose you wouldn't want it, hm?" Kai and Rei snapped their heads to the direction of the shrill voice, their gaze landing on a tall, sickly woman dressed in a plain, grey pant suit with a black whip hanging from her belt.   Her hair was lilac but fading to white, it was tied in a neat bun behind her head. She had blue gloves on, and in one hand, she held a medium sized vial, which held dark green liquid. 

          "I could always pour it down the drain, it's of no use to me."

          "Don't even think it." 

          "Ah…so you do want it. Hm…" She strolled over to them at a leisurely pace, stopping a few yards away. "Yes…yes I see. Spiky blue hair, matching fins…and striking blood red eyes, yes, it's nice to meet you Kai." He was surprised, but didn't show it. He only moved Rei behind him, his double clung to his other arm.

          "Who are you? How do you know my name?" She smiled, but nothing about it pleased them.

          "How could I not? You are Voltaire's grandson. The 'special project' he spoke of. His 'secret weapon' in his attempt to take over the world." Kai's glare narrowed. "However, if I didn't know that, I would have thought you were an escaped shark bitbeast. But since the other two cowering behind you bear no resemblance, you can't be." She tilted her head slightly to get a better look at the others, one seemed too tired to move, and the other tightened her hold on Kai's arm. She wanted to see the boy more closely, but the bluenette kept moving to shield him from her gaze. His actions left Ray wide open though, allowing the woman to see her fully.

          "Well, well, it's nice to see you again 326. I see you've regained your senses and decided to return home." Ray blinked twice in shock. "Now why don't you come here, I can pull your reel and you can go back to the calm waters." She tapped the glass of an empty extractor. 

With all the courage she could muster at the moment, she spoke out.

"There's no way I'm going back to that…that horrible cage!" Her voice was wavering; she just hoped that the woman didn't notice. She held out her hand, trying to stop it from shaking. "N-Now give me the preserver Queenie, before I have to take it myself!" 

~*~

(2:15 PM) Meanwhile…

          "Oh, this room looks like it would have a few preservers in it." Tyson exclaimed as he pushed the door wider to let the others see. The room was overflowing with bottles, measurement charts, analyzers, containers filled with liquids of multiple colors, and other scientific equipment. They all stepped in, closing the door quietly behind them. Once they made sure that no one was there, the trio began poking around.

          "Are you sure about this Tyson?" 

          "Chief, I'm pretty sure that if there are any preservers in this place, they'd be here." Kenny looked around, but didn't touch anything. He kept Dizzy close to his chest and cautiously went around the tables.

          "How will we even know which of these is the preserver?" The bluenette opened the cabinets but shut them when all they were filled with was cobwebs.

          "Well, I'm sure it'll be labeled or something." Kenny turned to him.

          "Do you really think they would do that? I'm pretty sure the scientists who made it would be able to tell it apart from the rest."

          "How do you know?"

          "It's like you and drinks, they all look the same but you can tell a Pepsi from a Coke can't you?"

          "Uh yea…but anyone can." He sighed and kept looking.

          "I think we need a back-up plan or something incase we can't tell them apart."

          "Oh yea? Like what? Bring one of the guards in here and ask them to tell us which is which? I don't think so dude." Kenny walked up to him.

          "Then what do you suggest?"

          "I suggest we find it and get to the others without getting caught." He said as he skimmed the counter. 

          "And how do you propose we do that?" Max finally spoke up from his spot in the corner.

          "Hey guys…" 

          "The way we always do it, we wing it."

          "Guys…"

          "That hardly works in bey battles, and besides, you can't 'wing it' for something like this."

          "Guys…"

          "And why not?" Tyson asked, putting his hands on his hips.

          "Because this is a lab filled with potions and concoctions to magnify or decrease the power of a bitbeast. Ray will have to drink that stuff, what if we give her something else?"

          "Hey guys…"

          "Well, she's a bitbeast, it's not like it'll really hurt her."

          "Kenny? Tyson?"

          "But what if she drinks something that'll…I don't know, turn her into a mutant bitbeast? Or grow her wings?"

          "Personally, I would love to fly."

          "Tyson!"

          "Guys!"

          "We can't put her life in danger! Since there's no specific label that shows which of these is a preserver, we should just look for another room!"

          "We don't have time! And what if this is the only place where they keep the thing?"

          "GUYS!" They both turned to him and yelled in unison,

          "WHAT?!" The blond sighed, lifted a crate onto the steel table, and turned it around to show some messily written words that looked like 'Bitbeast Preservers' on it.

          "I think this is it." He said. Kenny and Tyson looked at each other and then back to Max. "You guys can yell at each other later, let's just get one or two of these and find the others." They nodded and each picked up a bottle before placing the crate back on the floor. "Now let's get out of here, because I don't think that all these chemicals are safe to be inhaling." The BladeBreakers quickly got out and headed down the hall, hoping to get to their friends in time.

~*~

The woman now identified as Queenie chuckled lightly. "Oh 326-"

          "My name isn't 326! I'm not a number! My name's Ray!"         

"Ray? Hm…then I assume, his name's Rei too?" She pointed her long; almost needle like finger at the neko-jin, who was fighting to stay conscious as he leaned against his captain's warm back.

          "H-How did-"

          "Let me see if I can paint the picture. You escaped, ran, and ended up near his house. He found you, and introduced himself. Since you didn't have much choice, you assimilated him, and since he introduced himself before letting you talk, you replied that your name was also Ray. Then you ran into his friends, and they helped you get here. It must have taken a long time though, since you're almost a duplicate of him. However, he doesn't look too good. He must be near the breaking point. How much longer do you have? Fifteen minutes? Twenty? Five?"

          "Shut up and g-give me the vial!" Queenie held the bottle loosely between her fingers, threatening to drop it.

          "Now, now Ray…you aren't really in a position to be asking things of me." She growled at her…clenching and unclenching her fists. 

          "Ray, who is she?" She didn't hesitate to answer. 

          "Queenie, the brains of this place. She's the one who overlooks all the experiments and decides what's what." Kai could see that Queenie obviously knew how to push Ray's buttons, and was doing a great job so far. 

          'She probably wants Ray to lose it, to release the bitbeast in her so they can capture her again.' Using his peripheral vision the bluenette noticed a few men gathering in the shadows. 'Yea, once she releases the jaguar, her body's defenseless. They could pull the tab and she'll become a spirit again. We can't let that happen.' He yelled to her. "Ray, don't let her get to you. Trust me," He glared at her. "That's just what she wants." Queenie met his gaze and smirked.

          "I'm sure you know all about this don't you Kai?" He didn't answer. "Playing the tough guy are you? Yes, Boris said that you were a stubborn one."

          "Hey, leave him out of this!" She exclaimed as her body began to glow.

          "Ray!"

          "Hm…he chose to accompany you, so he's fair game. Then again, he probably just came because he wouldn't trust you with one of his own." Her eyebrow twitched.

          "Don't let her get to you!"

          "Argh…" More light, if she didn't calm down soon, she'd release the jaguar, which is what Queenie wanted.

          "Am I aggravating you Ray? I'm not even talking about you. I'm talking about the Biovolt quitter over there. The one who won't let that Rei boy out of arms reach. He must really be weak if he needs someone to keep him on his own two feet."

          "Leave Rei out of it too! I can't believe you have such low self-esteem you've reduced yourself to insulting kids just to get your way!"

          "If life gives you lemons…"  
          "Yea?! Well I hope those lemons spit in your eyes!" 

          "Don't give her the satisfaction Ray!" She knew that she had to keep it together, but that woman really put her on the edge. She could sense that Kai was starting to lose it too. 

"Weak friends, weak comebacks, I'm surprised you've made it this far, 326. Especially after absorbing such a pathetic human." You mind as well have jumped off the edge.

"That's it!" Ray wasn't surprised to hear that from Kai. She glanced over her shoulder to see Kai setting Dranzer and aiming for her head. "Move so I can do some damage to that son of a-" 

"No Kai." He stopped and looked at Rei, who had wrapped his arms around Kai's neck to keep himself up. "Don't. It…it could be a trap to get Dranzer." He sighed and reluctantly lowered his launcher.

"Hm, I guess he's not as bad as I thought. However, it seems like the bitbeasts aren't the only ones on a leash." His eyes were dangerously narrow.

"Shut up damn mother f-" He was about to lash out at her, thank goodness Rei held him back. He snaked one arm across his chest and placed his other hand over his mouth, using all of the strength he had left to stop his captain from doing something he might regret.

"Poor Kai." She grabbed the whip on her belt and pretended to strike something. "Whipped." The bluenette muttered the rest of his sentence in Russian, knowing that she could hear it but the neko-jins couldn't understand. Queenie laughed, but it sounded more like a witch's cackle. She replied in Russian, and it really had its effects. Rei almost lost his hold on him.

"Don't worry Kai," Ray turned her attention to Queenie as her eyes glowed emerald green. "That bitch is going to wish she never said ...uh…whatever the hell she said. I don't know what is was, but it sounded like something _she_ should be whipped for." Her body shook and in a flash it was still, her eyes still aflame, but on the floor in front of her was a spinning blade, and directly before her was a magnificent jade jaguar. She roared and lowered her head, bending her legs, poised to attack. But Queenie only smiled.

"Excellent." 

(2:20 PM Start countdown from 10 minutes)

~*~*~*~

SS-Ok…*flips pages in her Note Book* only one or two chapters left. It all depends on how I sort it out. 

Tym-And then you'll be over your slumpy and will finally get back to SSM, right? 

SS-Of course. BTW, since I'm starting school next Monday (-0-;;;) It may be a while until the next chapter…which just happens to be the action one.

Tym-Yea well, you were never too good at those scenes anyway so *whacks Tym with a mallet* XS

SS- Ahem…I have about ¼ of it done already, so hopefully I can finish it by the weekend, save it, post it next Wednesday or so, and have the last chapter up the following weekend.

Tym- Xo I'm confused.

SS-Good for you. Oh…and I finally changed my pen name. I couldn't stand having a number after it…so now I'm Sleepy Sheep Guardian. Someone's got to protect those sleeping sheep and that's someone's me. 

Tym-Then why aren't you SSG?

SS-Because…I just don't want that. 

Tym-Uh huh…well people, plz RnR! It'll make _SSG_ feel better. ^_~

SS- X_X *scribbles in NB* Need a new assistant…maybe a bitbeast.


	6. Tally

SS-Yea, another chapter out!

Tym-But wasn't this supposed to be out _last_ Wednesday?

SS-…Sorry, sorry, gomen nasai minna-san! School hasn't been very nice so far so things were a little hectic.

Tym-But she's sorry and I'll try and remind her to update sooner, especially since this fic's ending soon.

SS-Uh huh. Oh yea, and thanks for the Rei plushie Korie! *huggles it* Now I just need a Kai plushie to match. ~_^ 

~*~*~*~

The Spirit Within Me

Chapter Six – Tally

DISCLAIMER: We don't own BeyBlade, so no suing of any kind!

Tym-Unless you're making us sweaters or something nice that goes with spikes.

SS-Tym…eh…never mind.

~*~*~*~

"Don't worry Kai," Ray turned her attention to Queenie as her eyes glowed emerald green. "That bitch is going to wish she never said that...uh…whatever the hell she said. I don't know what is was, but it sounded like something _she_ should be whipped for." Her body shook and in a flash it was still, her eyes still aflame, but on the floor in front of her was a spinning blade, and directly before her was a magnificent jade jaguar. She roared and lowered her head, bending her legs, poised to attack. But Queenie only smiled.

"Excellent." 

(2:20 PM Start countdown from 10 minutes)

          Queenie took out a small silver whistle from her pocket and gave it three sharp blasts. "Code 412! Restrain and capture on my signal!" Another round of piercing blasts and the men in the shadows poured out. There were about a dozen of them, six with nets and ropes and the other half held a type of gun. Ray backed up and eyed the men, making sure that all of them were in her sight. She was still ready to fight, but the odds suddenly turned against her.

Queenie smirked, dropped the whistle and cracked the whip. "Go!" The men with the guns stepped forward and pulled the trigger, but what came out wasn't what she had expected. 

Kai's eyes widened. "They're launchers (1)." Six beyblades charged toward her, their bitbeasts rushing out to attack. Ray managed to dodge their first attempt, but they quickly turned as orders were called. Three chased her as the other three went to cut her off. 

Rei looked up. "She needs help." Nodding Kai readied Dranzer and prepared to let it rip.

"Sorry kid." One of the men used the chain he was carrying to knock Kai's launcher out of his hands and pushed Rei to the ground. He then grabbed the bluenette around the waist and lifted him off the floor, powerless to help. "You're not going anywhere." 

(9 minutes)

Kai kicked and struggled, trying to get out of his grip. It was no use; he was almost twice his size and overpowered him. Another man came and pointed to Rei. "What about him?" The first one glanced at him.

"He's nothing to worry about. Take the others and prepare to capture the girl."

"Right away." The man left, shouting to the others who followed his lead and began closing in on Ray. She was fighting off the bitbeasts, but things didn't look too good. Not only did they outnumber her six to one, but also with their increased speed and power (From the lab in the abbey), her chances were dropping. She did manage to knock two out, but it was because she had jumped out of the way and it rammed into one of the others. Still, four against one wasn't much…and she was getting tired. Not just because of the fighting, but because the source of her strength was already in the breaking point.

          "Rei! Rei can you hear me?!" Kai was screaming at his fallen friend, who hadn't moved since that man pushed him away. "Rei!"

          "I wouldn't be wasting my breath." He turned to see Queenie in the far corner, her twisted smile growing. "He's already in the breaking point; he'll be gone soon enough so there's no use calling out to him."

          "Shut up!" He focused his gaze on Rei, determined to wake him up. "Rei get up now! I know you're stronger than this! Say something!" Nothing, the raven hair blader still didn't move. And his double was dropping fast. She roared as the vulture bitbeast drove its crooked beak into her side, sending her to the ground. "Rei! She needs your help! Wake up!"

(8 minutes)

~*~ Rei's Dream ~*~

          "Ugh…" The boy groaned; he felt like a truck had smashed into him. Despite that, he got up and looked around. He was in a field, and was surrounded by nothing but tall green grass. "What 'Little House on the Prairie' book did I fall into?"

          "None to my knowledge." Rei lifted his head to see…grass. "Then again, I don't even know what that is…so maybe you did." The greenery was so tall that he couldn't tell what was coming towards him. The only way he knew something was approaching him was because the grass was parting.

          "Who are you?"

          "You don't know?"

          "Of course not, I can't see you because of all this stuff." He pushed some of it aside but more just replaced it. "Man, somebody needs to call a gardener." He heard a low chuckle.

          "You could never say something without having another comment behind it, could you Rei?"

          "Ok…so you know my name too. By any chance, do you know where I am?"

          "Yes," He felt something breathing behind him, and turned swiftly to see, Drigger (2). "You are in the astroplane." He backed up quickly, only to trip and fall.

          "Dr-Drigger?" The white tiger grinned and nodded.

          "Hello Rei." Still in disbelief, the boy reached out slowly to touch him. The tiger didn't wait though and met him halfway, nuzzling his blader's hand affectionately. He smiled.

          "Wow…you're real."

          "Yes, and so are you."

          "I am?!" Rei pulled his hand back and pinched himself. "Ow." A small red mark appeared on his hand. "Wh-what's going on?!"

          "I told you, you're in the astroplane, a plane that coexists with yours. It's where we stay until you need us." He rubbed his hand.

          "We? Who's we?"

          "We as in, me and all the other bitbeasts." He looked up and Rei did the same, that's when he saw a large red bird circle over them and land beside him. "Like Dranzer."

          "Dranzer?!" The phoenix nodded.

          "There's no need to pinch yourself again young Rei, I'm real too."

          "Young?" Drigger nudged him.

          "She calls every human young. Well…everyone except Kai."

          "That's Master Kai Drigger." He nodded.

          "Yea, yea."

          "So…wait…why am I here? Does that mean I'm not…back there?" Rei motioned downwards, towards what he thought was his world.

          "No, you're still down there, but you're going fast." He didn't understand his bitbeast.

          "What do you mean?"

          "He means…you're dying."

          "?!?!?!?!"

          "Dying from lack of energy; Ray is draining you, and you're slipping fast." He looked at his hands and furrowed his brows in confusion.

          "Then…why am I here?" Drigger sat beside him so he could have something to lean on.

          "You're here because I want to help you Rei." The boy did lean against the strong tiger, trying to take in everything. 

          "You can stop me from dying?"

          "…Not exactly. Only if Ray drinks that preserver thingy or if she pulls that tabby thingy and you get your energy back will you live."

          "Then how…"

          "Oh Drigger you drag everything out. Listen young Rei; Drigger is going to give you some of his energy so that you can stay up long enough to help Ray. However, once the battle's over, you'll lose the boost. So make sure you get your double that preserver so that your strength will return." Drigger stared at her.

          "I was about to say that Dranz." 

          "Well you weren't fast enough. I mean, Draciel says things faster than you."

          "What do you expect? He hangs with Dragoon all day; if he doesn't voice his opinions quickly he'll never get his word in."

          "You shouldn't blame others for your own faults." He glared, which was useless because Dranzer's stare was deadly. He cringed slightly.

          "So that's where Kai gets it from…or do you get it from him?" The phoenix looked at the young boy.  

          "I prefer to think that we strengthen each other's good qualities." The white tiger quirked an eyebrow.

          "Good qualities?" 

          "Yes." They ended their little argument when they sensed that time was running out. "Anyway, young Rei, there isn't much time left."

          "How do I get back?"

          "A voice will guide you." She flapped her massive wings and took off. "Good luck, and send my regards to Master Kai." He waved, only to have Drigger paw his shoulder.

          "Drig?"

          "There's no time. Close your eyes Rei, it's time to leave."

          "But…I wanted to talk-"

          "I know, but not now; maybe in another dream." He closed his eyes and felt a shot go through him. There was a warm feeling, but it soon went away as he heard someone shouting…

~*~ End Dream ~*~

(6 minutes) 

          "Rei! Rei wake up already! This is no time for a catnap!" He saw the boy's arm move, but he wasn't sure. "Rei? Uh REI GET UP IT'S TIME TO PRACTICE!" This time he was sure, he saw him turn his head and shake it.

          "No…no Kai it's too early…"

          "YES! Rei get up or it's extra practice for you!" He stirred, slowly bringing himself up to his knees.

          "Ok…ok…just give me a few minutes…" Ray noticed her double getting up and knocked the bear bitbeast out of her way to see him. However, the blade went flying and accidentally smacked Rei's head. He winced and looked over to the source. His eyes landed on the blade that had hit him, and then moved to battle and then he realized where he was. "Wow…ok that was some wake up call."

          "You! Restrain him!" The man holding Kai yelled out, the second ran past them and was about to grab the neko-jin until Kai stuck his leg out and tripped him. "Argh…somebody get him!" The captain took his chance and elbowed him in the ribs. The man doubled over and dropped Kai, who grabbed his launcher and ran towards Rei.

          "Are you ok?" 

          "Yea…actually, I feel just fine."

          "You look pretty fine too."

          "Huh?" He turned before the Chinese blader could notice the blush and set Dranzer.

          "Never mind, you got your blade?"

          "Uh, yea."

          "Then let's go." Rei nodded and set Drigger. "Let it rip!" Both blades went flying towards the others and the combined momentum knocked the bear blade out instantly. The playing field was level now, three to three. 

(5 minutes)

~*~

          Tyson, Max, and Kenny rounded another corner and leaned against the wall, catching their breath. Once they had left the lab, guards had caught sight of them and chased them throughout the corridors of the abbey. After their last attempt, the trio figured they had lost them.

          "Do you think we're in the clear guys?"

          "I don't know Tyson, but let's keep going just incase." Kenny was typing on Dizzy, trying to retrace their steps so that they could get to the others. 

          "I think…it's this way." He finally said, pointing down the right hall.

          "You sure Chief?" He closed his laptop and fixed his glasses.

          "Well, there's only one way to find out." 

          "Over here, I'm pretty sure they went this way." They tensed and began running.

          "Well let's find out now." They dashed down the dark corridor, praying that it was the right one. 

~*~

          Ray looked over at the two blades racing towards her and smirked. [All right, reinforcements have arrived.] Rei and Kai ran over to her body and took in the battle, devising out a plan of attack. The jaguar raced over to her friends and prepared to attack.

          "Ok Rei, you and Drigger take care of the guys around us, no doubt they're planning on capturing us. Join us when you're done."

          "I'm on it."

          "Ray, you and I will go on the attack; they won't stand a chance with us helping you." The jaguar nodded and charged at the vulture bitbeast, Kai's blue blade not far behind. "Time to bring out the heavy artillery," As it neared the mammoth-like beast, the blade glowed. "Go Dranzer!" Upon hearing the boy's voice, the brilliant phoenix rose and let out a cry. "Take them down, Fire arrows!" She didn't need to be told twice, Dranzer flapped her wings as she neared the mammoth and released the arrows. They hit with dead accuracy.

          Queenie glared at them. "No…what's going on?" With a few more hits, Dranzer had knocked the mammoth to the stonewall, its blade slowing down. Kai smirked and glanced at Rei and Drigger, making sure that they were ok.

          "Drigger!" The tiger quickly charged out and headed for the men surrounding them. "We need to disarm them Drig!" He looked around for a quick way to take them all out rather than facing each one by one. The large dangling chandeliers above them were only too perfect for the job. "Drigger let's turn off the lights! Tiger claw!" The green/gray blade flashed briefly and then scaled the wall. About half way up it jumped off and severed the chain holding up the lights. One effect that Rei hadn't anticipated however was that because of his actions, he had eliminated all the radiance in the room. The eerie lab had grown pitch black, with the only sources of light being the bitbeasts and a light glow from the tubes around them.

          "What's going on?" One of the men cried out.

          "How should I know-Wha!" The chandeliers came crashing down with a deafening bang, narrowly missing the men. The blade glowed and returned to Rei's hand.

          "Ok…not one of my most brilliant ideas, but it did the job." Kai glanced back at where he thought Rei was and called out to him.

          "You think? As if we weren't in the dark already."

          "Well you don't have to worry about being captured now." The captain could tell the raven-haired blader was grinning like mad.

          "Great. Now get over here…if you can find us." Rei jogged over, able to see the bluenette from the light that radiated from the bitbeasts. 

          "Of course I can find you Kai, I could spot your glare from a mile away." He set Drigger in his launcher and let it rip. "Now let's join the battle!" The white tiger quickly emerged from his blade and rushed over to Dranzer, who was fighting off a mammoth and what looked like an over-sized eel. "Tiger Claw!" With a roar Drigger attacked the eel that was nipping at the pheonix's talons and nailed him to the floor.

          Queenie's eye twitched. "Stop playing around! Take those bitbeasts down now!"

          "You heard her guys; we can't let a bunch of kids push us around. Denki, black lightning!" The eel wriggled under Drigger's paws and let out a surge of dark electricity. It hit the tiger with full force, knocking him down and causing the blade to wobble.

          "Drigger!" Kai had to hold Rei back to keep him from running out to his fallen bitbeast, who was being circled by the fish. "Get up Drig!" 

          "Take him out now!" Denki tackled the tiger before it could get up, sending him flying into the wall. Dranzer turned when she heard her friend crash into the wall. 

          [Drigger…] Her inattentiveness cost her though, as the mammoth she was fending off took the opportunity to ram into her, causing her to land beside him. Kai called out to her. 

          "Dranzer!" They both struggled to get up, the two approaching bitbeasts preparing to finish them off.

          [And h-here I thought you were always alert.]          

          [Shut up Drigger. We h-have to take them out quickly.]

          [Double team?]

          [No…we have to wait.] Drigger starred at her.

          [Wait?! Why?] He followed her gaze to the boys, and he sighed. [Oh yea…you never do anything without _Master Kai's_ permission.]

          [I'm sure he has a plan. If we charge now we'll be at a disadvantage.]

          [Excuses…]

          [Shut up!] While they argued the two opposing bitbeasts combined their attacks and hurled them at the BladeBreaker's bitbeasts.

          [Well if you aren't going to admit you're whipped, can you at least put up a defense?] 

          [Fine, but I'm NOT whipped.] Dranzer started flapping her wings, creating a smoky barrier between them and the raging attack. 

          "Drigger!"

          "Don't worry, they're safe for now. But we're going to have to double team them to take those guys out." Rei gazed from Kai to the battle. Currently their bitbeasts were fine, but he didn't know how long Dranzer could keep it up.

          "Ok, what's the plan?" Kai looked at him.

          "Double teaming them and taking the out." Rei face faulted.

          "That's it?!"

          "Got a better idea?" 

          "…Ok let's go for it then."

          "Dranzer evade and get on top of them!" 

          "Attack from behind Drig! Get a combo going!" Barely hearing the commands, the two got ready.

(3 minutes)

[Ha! I told you we were going to have to double-team them!]

          […Just get ready to run.]

          [Hehehehe…] Dranzer smacked him with her wing and dropped her defense.

          [Go!] They both ran out of the way and circled the enemy.

          [Catch you later Dranz!] The comment slid off her as she rose above the others and prepared to attack.

          "Flame Saber!" The two enemy bitbeasts backed away, trying to avoid the onslaught. 

          "Zoki, Denki (3), get ready to counter attack!" The mammoth and eel ran further from Dranzer's fire assault, needing to get away to be able to charge into her.

          [And where do you think you're going?] Drigger asked, cutting them off. [The party just started boys. And it would be rude to run from the hostess!] He tackled both of them to the ground, holding them down as best he could until his teammate could go in for the kill. [Hurry up Dranz! I can't hold them forever! And to think you called me a slowpoke!] He grinned as the phoenix glared.

          [Just shut it and move!] He complied as she hit the two dead on, taking them both out and knocking the blades out of the battle. Drigger grinned. 

          [Well that wasn't too hard.]

          [Hmph…]

          [Man, now you're starting to talk like Kai…that's just weird.] She narrowed her gaze on him, making the tiger cringe. [Or it's great. Yea, great, great.] She didn't lift her withering stare so he just turned his head. [Uh…let's see how Ray's doin-ouch!] He rubbed his head while Dranzer gave a hearty laugh. He turned in the direction the hit came from and found that Ray had taken out the vulture bitbeast and its blade was what had collided with his.

          [Sorry Drigger!] He glowered at her as the phoenix beside him continued snickering. 

          [Just watch where you knock your enemies next time, would ya?!] 

          [I promise.] She joined them and turned her gaze to Queenie, who was yelling at her men for failing. 

          "Two kids and a run-a-way bitbeast! How could you imbeciles lose to two kids and run-a-way bitbeast!?" One of the guys was brave enough (Or stupid enough) to answer. 

          "We're…we're sorry?" She blew up.

          "You're sorry? Sorry?!!? There's no room for apologies here! What are you going to ask for next, a second chance?!" Again, one had the audacity to speak up.

          "W-Well…now that you mention it-" 

          "Out, out, OUT!" They quickly fled the scene while she returned to the trio that had caused all of this. "Well, that just proved that you should never send a man do a woman's work. As she snapped her fingers one of the red tubes in the corner suddenly went dark and the fluid began to drain out. Everyone looked over in time to see it open, revealing a well built young girl with flaming red hair and striking blue eyes. She didn't notice them though, and walked straight to Queenie, bowing upon reaching her. 

          "What do you wish?" Queenie smirked and pointed to the three bitbeasts before her.

          "Eliminate them." The girl finally glanced at them, no emotion crossing her pale features. 

          "It would be my pleasure." Kai squinted to get a better look at her, it was so dark even with the light from their bitbeasts that he could only make out a few things about her, but it was enough. Those eyes…the hair…it was so familiar. And then she began to glow.

          "What's going on Kai?" Before the captain could respond a wolf-like bitbeast appeared in front of their own, bearing its teeth and pawing the ground. 

          "Looks like we're about to find out Rei." Queenie noted the confusion and shock in their eyes and smirked.

          "You've met your match…Tally, attack!"

(60 seconds and counting)

~*~*~*~

(1) Like the one that Tala used in the World Championships. 

(2) Is it one 'g' or two? I was thinking two like Tigger…but I don't know. Let's just stick with two ok?

(3) Zo is elephant and Denki is eel, I just added the –ki suffix to Zo to make it look like they have something in common like Dranzer, Drigger, Dragoon, ok? 

SS-Well there you go, it's not the end…actually I think I have two more chapters to go, unless you want me to squish it all into one big chapter and then have an epilogue. _Which will it be?_

Tym-Yes doooo tell. And FYI, that Tally part just came to her head while she was typing, so we didn't expect that. But you all probably know the deal with Tally right? Right? Well it'll be explained so don't jump to any conclusions. And remember, there'll be no…well, that would give it away now wouldn't it? Plz review! It'll make us both happy campers. 


	7. Kodak Moments

SS-Yea, next chapter! Hope you all enjoy this one. Finally got some Kai/Rei there for M-sen. But it might make Kai seem a tad OOC, so you've been warned. 

Tym-An OOC Kai telling his feelings to Rei? Hm…

SS-No, that's next chapter. But we have some 'don't leave me' stuff, but I don't want to give it away yet.

Tym-Right, so before you let the kitty out of the bag, let's begin!

Kai-You stuck Rei, MY Rei in a bag?! *Glares daggers at SS and Tym*

SS+Tym-EEP!

Rei-*pops out of nowhere* I'm not in a bag Kai, what are you talking about?

Kai-Rei! *Picks up Rei and carries him to another room* We'll be back by the end of the chapter.

SS-Be careful! We have one more chapter to go and I can't afford to get a new Rei!

~*~*~*~

The Spirit Within Me

Chapter Seven – Kodak Moments 

DISCLAIMER: Go back to one of the other chapters please…this is getting ridiculous.

~*~      

"Well, that just proved that you should never send a man do a woman's work. As she snapped her fingers one of the red tubes in the corner suddenly went dark and the fluid began to drain out. Everyone looked over in time to see it open, revealing a well built young girl with flaming red hair and striking blue eyes. She didn't notice them though, and walked straight to Queenie, bowing upon reaching her. 

          "What do you wish?" Queenie smirked and pointed to the three bitbeasts before her.

          "Eliminate them." The girl finally glanced at them, no emotion crossing her pale features. 

          "It would be my pleasure." Kai squinted to get a better look at her, it was so dark even with the light from their bitbeasts that he could only make out a few things about her, but it was enough. Those eyes…the hair…it was so familiar. And then she began to glow.

          "What's going on Kai?" Before the captain could respond a wolf-like bitbeast appeared in front of their own, bearing its teeth and pawing the ground. 

          "Looks like we're about to find out Rei." Queenie noted the confusion and shock in their eyes and smirked.

          "You've met your match…Tally, attack!"

(60 seconds and counting)

The wolf charged towards them, reaching Ray first. They collided with equal force, sending both flying backwards.

"We got to help her out!" Rei yelled. Kai just nodded, still trying to figure Tally out. 

'She…she can't be a copy like Ray…could she? No. Last time I checked, Tala was with the other Demolition Boys across town. There's no way he could be here now giving her energy.' Drigger and Dranzer launched their attacks at the wolf only to have them deflected. 'Besides, he wouldn't go back to them, he's through with Biovolt.' Dranzer was flung aside like a rag doll in a few seconds, her blue blade struggling to stay up.

"Kai what's wrong?!" He turned his head to meet Rei's worried gaze. "It's like you weren't even phased by your bitbeast's fall." It was then that the captain noticed that his phoenix was currently out of the battle, using all her strength to return and help.

"…Dranzer…"

"Kai what's wrong?!" He shook his head.

"Nothing." He had to keep his mind on the battle before they lost to that fake. 'If she's not feeding off of Tala then how did she…how is she…' 

"Confused Kai?" He snapped his head up to Queenie, who had been keeping an eye on him. "You just hate not knowing something don't you? Well let me clear things up for you. It's true that Tala isn't here now, but that doesn't mean Tally isn't a copy like Ray." Rei wasn't listening as intently as Kai was, he was concentrating on the fight, one that they were slowly gaining ground in.

"If Tala isn't here then how is she a copy like Ray?!"

"There's more than one way to skin a cat. Back when Boris was making a few…adjustments on Tala, he sent me a copy of his data. My team of scientists used the information on the disk to create what you see before you." She pointed to the motionless red head a few from her. "A near exact replica of the Demolition Boy's captain, down to the smallest detail…of course, this one is superior because it is female (1). Not to mention she has a greater learning capacity, and is able to mimic anything I show her in a matter of seconds. Tally is unstoppable. She is more advanced then Tala, and stronger then all of you."

(30 seconds)

          Kai tried to shrug off her comments and focus on the battle. Dranzer had returned, but was weakened. Ray seemed to be their strongest link at the moment; she was biting at the wolf whenever she had the chance. Drigger was still hanging in there, but for some reason, he was slowing down. The phoenix noticed it too.

          [Drigger, what's wrong with you?]

          […I don't know…I feel tired…]

          [Tired?]

          [Yea…I can barely keep up with those two.] He motioned to the two beasts that made the Energizer bunny envious. 

          [Can you still battle?]

          [I…I don't know…]

          [Wait…how long has it been?]

          [How should I know?! I've been a little busy if you hadn't noticed.]

          [Cut the excuses, I think time's almost up. That's why you're losing it.]

          [But…but we still have to get through this. We need to get that preserver.]

          [I know that, but you're fading quicker then the sun on a windy day. You can't possibly fight any longer.] The white tiger got up and ran towards the two brawling beasts, determined to do his part.

          [Yes I can. If I give up now then Rei's as good as gone.] Dranzer chased after him. 

          [Let me handle this, you should rest.]

          [Like you can do any better with that damaged wing. Don't think I can't see you wincing.] Just as Ray was thrown aside Drigger dug his claws into the wolf's side while Dranzer pierced the skin below her neck with her talons. With a loud howl Tally let loose a taste of her blizzard attack and sent the BladeBreaker's beasts flying.

          "Drigger!"

          "Dranzer!" After a few seconds, the phoenix began to move, she opened her eyes to see Ray struggling with the wolf again. 

          [Ugh…you ok Drigger?]

          […]

          [Drigger?!] She looked over to her fallen friend to find that he wasn't moving, and showed no signs of getting up. [Drigger! Get up!] 

(10 seconds)

          […Dranz…watch…watch…]

          [Watch over Rei?] The tiger was disappearing. 

          [And…and yourself…] He vanished, and his blade finally stopped.

          "No Drigger!" Suddenly Rei felt a sharp pain shoot through his side. He grabbed his left arm, which had gone numb, and blinked a few times as his vision went blurry.

(3…)

"Rei? Rei, are you ok?" Kai asked. The younger shook his head. He swayed from side to side, his breaths becoming rapid and short. 

(2…)

The bluenette quickly turned to the battle as Tally sunk her teeth into Ray's leg, causing her to let out a piercing roar. 

(1…)

Rei took in a sharp breath as he felt a searing pain course through his leg. He couldn't hear anything, he opened his mouth but couldn't speak, and he could feel his heart beating slower…slower…His breath was caught in his throat; he closed his eyes…and fell. 

"Rei!!!" 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

SS-It would be too mean to end it there right?

Everyone-YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SS-*shrinks away and continues typing* That's what I thought.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Kai caught the Chinese blader before he connected with the hard stone floor and held him in his arms. "Rei! Rei!!" He gently shook him, fear spreading throughout his body. "Wake up!" Kai was trying to stay calm, reassuring himself. 'This is just like last time…he fell, but he woke up after a few minutes. He's going to be ok…he has to be ok…' 

"Looks like he bit the dust." Kai glared at her. "It's about time too. I admit, he lasted longer then I would have expected, but no one is able to survive once one of my creations assimilates them." Kai held Rei closer to him and narrowed his gaze. Even though it was dark, he knew that she could see him. "Aw, he was really close to you wasn't he? Well you know what they say, it's better to have loved and lost then-"

"Shut up!" He glanced down at Rei. "You're going to be ok…you're…you're stronger then this." He turned his attention back to the battle, gently stroking the boy's tanned arm absentmindedly.

[Uh…] After Ray had gotten loose of Tally's bite, she felt as if something passed through her. [W-What was that?] Then she realized what it was. She turned her head and saw that Rei had collapsed. [No…] 

Taking the opportunity, the wolf let loose her blizzard attack, hitting the jaguar with dead accuracy. Her blade was blown to the girl's feet; it was still spinning, but Ray was fading. She would have been unconscious if the pain didn't keep her up.

[Ray!] Dranzer called out. She didn't hear a response. [Oh no.] 

[Looks like it's just you and me.] The phoenix turned to face the wolf, her eyes filled with pride. 

[Just the way I prefer it. I will avenge my friends by myself.] The wolf snickered.

[Confident, aren't you? Well you certainly don't look it.] Dranzer blinked kept her poker face. [Hmph…just like Kai. But you can't hide from me…wolves can smell fear.] 

[Cut the crap Tally. Even if you are a carbon copy Tala, you do not have his skill, or Wolborg's power.] She charged at her.

[You're right…I'm better.] She replied and sprinted to meet the phoenix. [How's this for power?!] Tally released another blizzard that stopped Dranzer, the cold winds pushing against her. [Can you stand the cold?] 

[Do you know what happens when you fight fire with snow?] With a few flaps of her large wings, Dranzer rose above the onslaught and dove for her. [You get burned!] 

          "Dranzer, Flame Saber!" A wave of heat smothered the wolf as the phoenix continued to attack.

          [How's the fire?!] She didn't hear an answer, only a chuckle. All of a sudden the fire dissipated, and below Dranzer stood a smirking wolf.

          [It was warm…but nothing special.]

          [What?]

          [Surprised? Guess I didn't get burned.] Tally tilted her head towards her. [But that doesn't mean you won't…]

          [Huh?] The wolf's eyes glowed an eerie purple as wind began to pick up around her. 

          [A storm is coming…the likes of which you've never experienced before!] Before Dranzer could react, a mountain of snow and hail surged from Tally and inundated her. All that could be heard was a small screech, and then a clank as the blue blade hit the wall on the opposite side of the room, no visible light coming from it. 

          "Dr-Dranzer…" Kai was shaking slightly; he didn't know what to do.

          "Looks like it's all over…"

          [Argh…never.] A flash of green erupted from the side of the room, right where Ray's body was. [It's not over…until that fake copy is put in her place!] The jaguar stood and slowly made its way back to the center of the lab.

          [Stubborn…you won't win. Why waste your energy?]

          [I'm not wasting my energy…as long as…as long as Rei's still here, I have a reason to keep going.]

[The way you persist is admirable; however, that human is gone, his being here does not change your power.]

[It affects me more than you know. Of course, I wouldn't expect you to know; after all, you aren't even a real copy. You're just a…a clone…thingy made from someone's data.]

[Idiot, that's what a copy is.]

[Well…then you're not the same kind of copy as me. You don't know what it feels like to share someone's feelings, thoughts…their actual life.] She lowered her head, preparing to attack. [Even if Rei's not really here, I can feel him, his strength, and that…Tally…is what's going to help me kick your carbon butt!] She pounced, claws outstretched, aimed at her throat.

[We'll see whose carbon butt is going down.] She stood ready, waiting for the right moment to unleash another torrential blizzard attack. Ray was within reach in a matter of seconds, and that's when she was hit. 

[I hope you like snow, because here comes the storm!] 

"Ray move!" A confused expression was seen on the jaguar's face before the whiteout swallowed her. 

*Ray's dream*

          "Owwie…that hurt." She was sprawled out on the ground, eyes closed. She could feel a slight mist on her cheeks, and sat up slowly, rubbing her head gently. "Where…" She opened her eyes and looked around, there was a small waterfall next to her, and an endless meadow before her. "Where am I?" 

          "You're in an astroplane." She turned her head to the side, spotting the source of the voice. 

          "A what?" The boy who had answered her looked just like Rei…like Rei and Drigger combined. His messy green hair was held back by a yellow bandana, and below his golden eyes were a few matching green stripes. He was wearing a simple white top with an emblem in the middle, and baggy blue pants. There was a fleck of gold behind him; she assumed it was his tail. Ray also noticed two cat-like ears hiding in his mess of hair.

          He jumped off the fence he was sitting on and walked towards her. "An astroplane. It's a plane that coexists with yours and the human one."

          "Mine?"

          "Your bitbeast one. You are a bitbeast, aren't you?"

          "Well…yea, I guess so." He crossed his arms and looked up into the sky.

          "That's what I thought. By the way, my name's Neko."

          "Neko…my name's Ray."

          "I know." She stood up and looked at him.

          "You do? How?"

          "Oh, the others and I were watching you."

          "Others? What others?" He glanced at her before pointing across the field. That's when she saw a few more people. The weird thing was…they all looked like him. Not copies, but they looked like humans with features of bitbeasts.

          "We were all watching you and your battle. I was surprised you didn't notice that blizzard attack coming." She glared at him.

          "Hey! It's harder then it looks!" He merely chuckled. "Stop it!"

          "I'm sorry. Yes, I do know that fighting a bitbeast is hard, it's just that, when you watch someone else do it, you can see their mistakes a few seconds before they do it and you think, 'How could she have not seen that coming?' Do you understand?" Ray thought about what he said, and realized that he was right. When she watched the others battling, she was shocked that the opponents got easy shots because her friends weren't paying attention.

          "Yea, I understand. I guess I just didn't want to admit it."

          "That's ok, you are already a stubborn person, adding in Rei's willful attitude just makes things worse." She starred at him.

          "Ok Neko, just how much do you know about me?"

          "I guess I do have some explaining to do don't I?" She nodded and he motioned her to sit. "Well, you've already realized that I resemble your friend Rei, and his bitbeast Drigger…that's because I'm their…"

          "Their what?"

          "Well, I don't know the human word for it…but I'm sort of like their…guide. No that's not a very good word for it…"

          "Like their conscience?"

          "Sort of. Think of Jimminy Cricket and those animals in Snow White combined."

          "That's…confusing."

          "Yes it is. Let's just say I watch after both of them and steer them in the right direction. For instance, it was my idea to have Drigger transfer his energy to Rei so that he could battle."

          "Oh, so that's what happened. Wait…but…Drigger got knocked out of the battle, and Rei's…what's going to happen to him?!?"

          "Drigger's energy couldn't last long enough to sustain Rei, what was supposed to happen to him before is happening now." Ray was shaking she hugged her knees.

          "N-No…Rei…" She felt him put his hand on her shoulder. "C-Can't you give them a-another idea? I-Isn't there anything else y-you can do?!" 

          "That's why you're here. I brought you here to help you." She grabbed his shirt.

          "What? What can you do to help?!" 

          "Calm down. Calm down. The more you struggle and use your energy the lesser chance Rei will have of coming back." Her hopes lifted again.

          "There's a chance he can come back?! What can I do?!" He grabbed her shoulders.

          "First, let go of my shirt. It's new." She grinned sheepishly and let go of his shirt. "Good, next calm down." She nodded and took deep breaths, but the thought that Rei still had a chance kept her spirits high. 

          "Now what?" He dug his hand in one of his pockets and pulled out a couple necklaces, each had a different symbol or picture dangling from it. "What are those Neko?"

          "These are traits that Rei or Drigger possess. I always carry them in case they lose one."

          "Huh?"

          "Oh never mind…it's a long story and we don't have the time-ah hah! Found it!" He pulled out one of the necklaces and stuffed the rest back in his pocket. Neko held it up so that she could see it. Ray looked at the symbol it was three jagged stripes.

          "Which trait is that one?" 

          "This…" He undid the clasp, placed it around her neck, and closed it. "This is Drigger's Tiger Claw." She picked it up and looked at it closely, he was right, it was the Tiger Claw. 

          "What do I do now?" 

          "Now, you kick that duplicate's butt!"

          "But how-oh…I get it." He sighed in relief.

          "Good, I was afraid I was going to have to explain that too." He stood and, so did she. "Now you better go before it's too late." He ushered her back to the waterfall.

          "How do I get back?" He smiled.

          "Just close your eyes and think of the battle. Remember, you'll be in the battle when you return." She nodded and closed her eyes.

          "How long until I return?" She didn't hear him answer, she only felt someone push her forward. "Ahh!" She fell into the water and disappeared, leaving a chuckling Neko behind. 

          "I love that part."

          "Neko…" He turned slowly, grinning like mad.

          "Yes Tori?" Before him stood a girl a little taller then him. She had flaming red hair tied in a ponytail, two blue marks across each cheek, and blue eyes. She had a tank top, a short skirt, and boots. Her tail swayed gently in the wind, as did her wings. 

          "Why didn't you just tell her to jump in? Must you act like Ryu and Kame?" (2) He continued to grin.

          "It rubbed off on me." He heard a 'hn' from her as she turned and walked away, with Neko close behind.

*End dream*

          Ray opened her eyes but only saw the blizzard around her. [I'm back in the battle.] She thought, and then remembered the necklace dangling on her and tried to hold her ground. [I have to use the Tiger Claw to beat this fake, but first I need to get a clear shot…and how am I going to get a clear shot at her with this storm?] Suddenly Ray felt warmth around her, and saw that some of the snow was disappearing. [What?]

          [What's going on?] Before too long, all of the snow was gone, revealing a tired but still standing jaguar. [What? How? I should have won!]

          [Like I said before…when you fight fire with snow…you get burned.] Ray smiled and looked up to see Dranzer flying high.

          [Dranzer, you're ok!]

          [A little whiteout could never take me down. I was trained better then that.] She glanced back to see a small smile on her master's lips. [You better do what you need to do while you have the chance Ray!] She blinked and realized that she had her chance. Tally was still stunned by Dranzer's return and was wide open.

          [All right, time to find out what happens when you play with the big cats!] She sprinted off, making a beeline for the wolf. [This is it…if this doesn't hit, Rei's done for…] She thought as she jumped above Tally, her claws ready to kill. 

          [She shouldn't have returned…how?!] It was then that the wolf noticed that Ray wasn't where she was. [Where?]

          [Look up you idiot!] Tally tilted her head to see a flash of green coming down at her. [Take this you carbon nothing!] She slashed at her, [Have a taste of the Tiger Claw!] the green light surrounding both of them. 

          [Ray!]

          "Ray!"

          "What's going on?! No, Tally!" Smoke rose as the jaguar's decimating attack came down. The deafening sound vanished as the dust and smolder disappeared. The gray blade flew up and headed straight for Queenie.

          "Wha!?!" It broke upon hitting her head, causing her to drop the vial she held and break. She fell to the ground, unconscious. Not to long after, Tally's limp body collapsed as well. 

          "R-Ray?" From Dranzer's light he could see the green blade move towards Ray's body and vanish. The girl blinked a few times before lifting her head and looking around. "Ray, are you ok?" She couldn't bear to look at him she dropped her head. "Ray?" She began to sniffle.

          "K-Kai…" Her voice was cracking. "I-I'm so sorry." 

          "What? Why-oh." He realized why she was upset, because she had knocked Tally's blade out it had hit Queenie, which was good, but that made her drop the preserver…that was very bad. He suddenly became very aware of the motionless boy in his arms.

          "G-Good…I was afraid I-I was going to have to explain it t-to y-you." Ray smiled slightly…remembering her conversation with Neko and how he had said the same thing. 'Neko…do you have a solution for this?' She looked up, expecting to receive an answer. And actually, something did come to mind. As the ends of her bandana fell across her face, she realized that there was still a way for Rei to come back. She lifted her hand to her temple and felt the tag there. She turned to Kai.

          "Kai…" He looked to her. "P-Please tell Rei that…that I never meant to hurt h-him, and that I'm r-really sorry that all of this happened…" 

          "What are you talking about-" It was then that Kai realized what she was doing. Ray was taking off her bandana, revealing the small tab on the side of her head. "Ray, don't."

          "N-No…I have to…Rei's too important to you, to your friends to lose."

          "But-"

          "And…after all, I'm just a copy. Would you rather have the original or the copy?" She fingered the tab.

          "Dranzer, stop her!" The phoenix that had been silent all that time raced towards the girl.

          [Ray, stop!]

          "T-Tell Rei I'm s-sorry…" 

          "No!"

          [Stop!] It was too late…she closed her eyes and pulled the reel waiting for the pain to come. When she felt nothing, she opened her eyes, but gasped as she saw swirls of light surround her. 

          "Wha-Ah!" The light started to enter her, and she cringed at the pain. Dranzer stopped before her and returned to her blade. The light was too much for her. 

          "Ray!" When most of the light had pierced her skin it began to shoot out of her, along with whisps of green flecks. Ray snapped her head up, opening her mouth to scream, only to find that her voice was gone. The green flecks were coming out in steady streams now, the light guiding them up above her, forming strips. When the last bits of flecks floated away from Ray, the light vanished, and she collapsed on the floor. The necklace disappearing shortly after.

~*~*~*~*~*~

SS-What about here? Would it be mean to stop here?

Everyone-YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SS-Ok…ok…just wondering…*continues to type*    

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Ray!" Kai called out, then turned his attention back to his Rei as the green waves circled above him and burst apart into dust, the bits and pieces slowly descending into his body until they were gone. "Rei…" The bluenette shook him gently; he wasn't about to give up on the neko-jin. "Come on Rei, wake up…" He turned him so that he could see his face, smiling slightly when the tiger's head rolled against his chest. 

          "Rei, please tell me you're ok…that it wasn't too late." Still no answer, or any sign of movement. "Come on, I know you're stronger than this. You're too stubborn to go this way. Who's going to stop me from killing Tyson if you're not there? If you're not there…with me." There was a loud knock coming from behind him, and then a cracking sound. Kai glanced over his shoulder in time to see a blue/white blade and a green one smash through the door. Followed by a hand reaching in to unlock the gate. Tyson, Max, and Kenny rushed through, each holding a tube in their hand.

          "Kai! Uh…what happened here?" Tyson's eyes wandered from his captain kneeling a few feet from him, to the broken tubes on the side, finally landing on Rei's double lying still in the middle of the room. "Man…you guys tore this place apart." Kai kept his face neutral. It was then that Max noticed that Ray's body was starting to fade. He blinked twice and shook Kenny's shoulder.

          "Chief, do you see what I see?" He looked to where the blond was pointing, gasped, and ran over.

          "Oh my goodness! What happened to Rei Kai?! Is he ok?" Max ran over to him.

          "What about Ray?!" He motioned to the other Chinese blader behind them.

          "Oh my God! She's…disappearing." Kai couldn't take their naïveté.

          "Hurry and give her the preserver you idiots." They didn't retaliate, but tended to the girl instead. While Max was holding her head up, Kenny carefully poured the liquid down her throat. After a few seconds she shot up and coughed.

          "Ahk! That stuff's horrible!" She coughed again, holding her throat. "What was it, jalapenos with rotten egg yolk?!" The two managed a smile, and things looked ok, until Tyson spoke up.

          "Kai, what's wrong with Rei? Is…is he…"

          "No." He answered quickly, and then realized that maybe… "No he's not. Well…"  
          "You don't know?"

          "…" Kai lowered his head, trying to feel the boy's breath. Nothing. Ray crawled over, looking exhausted.

          "H-He'll be all right." Kai gazed at her.

          "How do you know?"

          "I…I can tell…" She fell to the floor, asleep in seconds. 

          "Now what's wrong with her?" Max picked her up.

          "Probably a side effect from the preserver." He turned to Rei. "But what about him?" Kai starred at him. 

          "He's…he's going to be fine." His eyes softened as he gazed at the boy he was holding. 'He has to be ok…I have to tell him…' 

          "Ugh…"

          "Rei?!"

          "Mmm…K-Kai?" He managed a smile.

          "Yea. It's me. Are you ok?"

          "Uh…uh huh." He tried to lift himself up, only to fall back into his captain's arms.

          "I don't think you should be walking." He got up, holding the boy safely in his arms. 

          "Guess…I guess you'll have to carry me then."

          "Hn."

          "Do you mind?" He smirked.

          "You'll just have to repay me later." Rei smiled and quickly fell asleep in the bluenette's arms.

          "Ok…Rei's ok…and Ray's ok…but what about them?" Tyson asked as he pointed to Tally and Queenie, both still unconscious. 

          "We'll ask Mr. Dickinson to deal with them when we get outside. Come on, let's go-" He stopped when he noticed Tally shifting. 

          "Ugh…" Tally lifted herself to her knees and rubbed her temple. "I-I can't believe I lost…"

          "D-Don't be too hard on yourself…" Tally looked up and gasped as she saw everyone. "I-I had The Tiger Claw…plus my own power…you c-couldn't have possibly beat me. B-But if N-Neko hadn't given it t-to me…you would have won." Everyone was confused by what she said. 

          "R-Ray?" Tally got up and looked from them to her broken blade. When she starred at it, it disappeared and she felt stronger. 

          "Yup…it's me. B-But I'm tired…night night." With that she fell asleep again. Everyone except Tally and Kai was confused. 

          "Kai, what's going on?" He ignored Kenny's question.

          "Tally, are you ok?" She nodded.

          "Yes. I will be fine."

          "Good. After we get out of here, there's someone I want you to meet…that is…if you're done with this place." The red head glanced around her, her gaze landing on Queenie. She then looked to Ray on Max's back, and Rei in Kai's arms. 

          "Yes. I now see that all of this…it's not right. And following someone just because they claim to be my creator is foolish. I would like to meet your friend." Kai nodded.

          "You'll like him…he's just like you." He looked around and noticed that the walls didn't seem too stable. "We had better get out of here, we'll talk outside." He motioned all of them, including Tally, to follow him. As they exited the abbey Kai and Tally told them what had happened, or at least, what they could explain. And as they got outside and entered the forest, Tally didn't even look back, none of them did.

~*~

(3:15 PM) –The time doesn't really matter anymore…it's just in case you were wondering 

When they were half way through the forest, the group heard something coming their way. "What's that?" Max asked. Kenny adjusted his glasses, trying to get a good look.

"Hey, it's a van." Tyson looked over his shoulder.

"It's Mr. D!" Indeed, after the van stopped, Mr. Dickinson stepped out.

"Oh thank goodness you kids are all right. I was getting worried." He glanced at each of them, his smile dropping as he noticed all their cuts and scrapes. And his expression became one of confusion when he spotted Tally. "Is that…Tala?" Tally pointed to herself.

"Hm, no…my name's Tally."

"Tally?" Kai walked up to him.

"We'll explain later, but first can you call someone to check out the abbey? They'll be surprised at what they find."

"I already did. The proper authorities are already on their way."

"Then let's get these guys inside." Everyone climbed into the van, taking a seat and finally getting some rest. When everyone was set, they took off, leaving the horrible abbey behind.

~*~

After a while, one of the neko-jins began to wake up, rubbing her eyes until she realized where she was. "We…we made it?" Kenny was first to notice, since he was sitting next to her, and tapped her shoulder.

          "You bet. We're on our way home. Well, to Tyson's home anyway."

          "Oh. Thank goodness." She took a look around the van, it was like a duplicate of the one the came in. Mr. Dickinson and some other man were in the front talking about something or another, and she and Kenny were behind them. Tally was in the row after hers, leaning against the window in slumber. Across from her, Ray saw Max and Tyson leaning against each other, fast asleep.

          'I'd be tired too if I hadn't fallen asleep before them.' Her eyes wandered again, landing on the two boys a few seats back. She grinned, her fangs showing. Kai was leaning against the seat, holding Rei protectively in his arms…a small smile graced his lips. The neko-jin was also beaming, his face buried just below Kai's shoulder. 

          'Now if that isn't a Kodak moment I don't know what is.' Of course she knew that if she had taken a picture of it Kai would hunt her down for the rest of her life, but it was a nice thought. She slumped back into her chair and closed her eyes, welcoming the sleep she needed. 

*Kai's POV*

          I opened my eyes briefly, taking in the surroundings. Practically everyone was asleep, except the driver and Kenny. I looked out the window; we were still in the forest…I guess we haven't been driving for too long, we still had a way to go. And then I remember the boy in my arms, and suddenly I'm grateful that we had another hour or so left. 

          Rei was sitting on my lap, resting contently against me, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I remove my hand from his waist to brush some of his silky locks out of his face, revealing a smile on his lips. He shifts his body a little, leaning into me more (If that was even possible). I put my hand back where it was and slide down my seat so that he would be more comfortable. 

          Hm? When did I care about his comfort so much? Well, it's obvious that I can't keep denying what my heart and now my mind have been yelling at me for so long. Yea, I've fallen, pretty hard too. But then again, who wouldn't? Rei was absolutely perfect, from his raven tresses, to his amazing golden eyes, his gentle voice, light touch, his optimistic yet realistic attitude…I think I could list things off forever. But I don't want to now; right now I just want to hold him in my arms.

          I run my hand up and down his side slowly, affectionately, enjoying the contact…though I wish his clothes weren't so long and baggy, they hide his figure. And then I hear him purr lightly and feel him nuzzling his head into my chest. I sigh, and close my eyes; it can't get any better than this. 

*Normal POV*

          Kai slowly drifted to sleep, holding his kitten protectively in his arms. Though, technically he wasn't his kitten, Kai had yet to tell Rei how he felt about him. No doubt he was waiting until they reached Tyson's house. However, part of the bluenette was afraid to admit his feelings, after all, rejection wasn't something Kai or anyone else wanted to experience. He just had to wait and see what card fate was going to deal him, courage or cowardice, companionship or loneliness, love…or despair. 

~*~*~*~

(1) I'm not saying that guys suck…(After all, Rei and Kai are guys!) it's just something that needed to be said.

(2) Ryu is Dragon…or Dragoon in this case, and Kame is turtle. Tori is bird…I think you know who that is. 

SS-Getting a little dramatic with that last sentence, but I didn't feel like rephrasing it. Ok…one chapter left! Man…this one was pretty long even for me.

Tym-Yea, I can't believe you really squished all that into one chapter.

SS-I have more time now you know…ever since I broke my ankle/leg I've been sitting a lot.

Tym-You have crutches you know…

SS-But I don't like using them…my god…SIX WEEKS!!!! Argh…

Tym-Yea…now that's long. Anyway…please review! It always makes her feel better. 

SS- =) Hey…have you seen Kai? He said that he would have Rei back by the end of the chapter… *hears something from the other room* 

Tym-I…wouldn't go there…

SS- _;; I hope Rei's ok…we need him for the last chapter. *hears more sounds*

Tym-I'm sure he'll be ok…I think…


	8. Things to Earn

SS-Ok, this is it. People who've read my other stories would know that I usually put the epilogue with the last chapter so here it is. 

Tym-Last chapter already, well that was pretty quick. 

SS-I know. 

Tym- Oh, before you start the ending of your chapter story thingy…let's thank all the reader/reviewer people!

SS-Oh yea! I…I knew that ^.^;; 

~**Lot's of thanks to**…Reicu, Korie, maliks-dragon, Maytel, Admiral2, acedragon, Thorn, Eresphen's Light, and Moi. Special thanks to Hiroko and Just-some-girl1 (First people to review ^_~), and a big thank you thank you to my fellow anime fanatic Madison! Thanks for getting me hooked on BeyBlade M-sen, and with that…let's begin!

~*~*~*~

The Spirit Within Me

Chapter Eight/Epilogue – Things to earn

DISCLAIMER: Go to the last chapter…it'll tell you to go to the one before that…you'll find it there.

Dedicated to M-sen, who made me get off my butt and helped me get back into writing. 

~*~*~*~

Kai slowly drifted to sleep, holding his kitten protectively in his arms. Though, technically he wasn't his kitten, Kai had yet to tell Rei how he felt about him. No doubt he was waiting until they reached Tyson's house. However, part of the bluenette was afraid to admit his feelings, after all, rejection wasn't something Kai or anyone else wanted to experience. He just had to wait and see what card fate was going to deal him, courage or cowardice, companionship or loneliness, love…or despair.

When they got to Tyson's house everyone filed out, sorta. Kenny practically jumped out, overjoyed that the whole experience was over. Ray walked out slowly, rubbing her eyes after waking again. She yawned and stretched, waiting for the others to come out. Tally quietly made her way to the other bitbeast, not showing any signs of fatigue. Max was next, dragging a half asleep Tyson behind him. He finally woke when the blue hair boy tripped over the last step and fell on the blond. Mr. D. helped them up and into the house as Kai came out. He was carrying Rei piggyback style, obviously not wanting to wake the neko-jin. Ray walked with him as they made their way inside. 

It was only 6:30pm, but since they were all exhausted everyone took a nap until dinner. Tyson and Max fell asleep in the living room and Kenny slumped into a chair with Dizzy on his lap and dozed off. Meanwhile, Kai carried Rei into one of the guest rooms…away from Tyson's snoring. Ray set out some blankets as the bluenette laid him down, covering the boy in its soft layers. "After all that happened today I wouldn't be surprised if he slept for days." Kai nodded and looked up at her.

"That's ok, he deserves-whoa…"

"What?" Kai leaned in close to her. "Kai?"

"Your…hair."

"What?! What about my hair?!" She reached behind her, grabbed a tuft of her long tresses, glanced at it and gasped. "I'm…I'm…I'm a…"

"You're as green as a cucumber." Kai finished.

"B-But I had hair as black as onyx on the ride home."

"I guess when you took the preserver you started reverting to the way you were supposed to be." She combed through her hair.

"Yea…anything else different?" Kai blinked.

"You can figure that out for yourself." She starred at him.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He means nothing he wants to see." They both turned to see Tally standing on the threshold.

"Tally. I forgot you were still here." The red head smirked.

"Obviously. I'm glad to see that the boy is recovering; he should be fine." Ray took a step forward, intentionally putting herself between the wolf and Rei.

"Is there something you needed?"

"As a matter of fact, I wanted to speak with Kai. In private please."

"Since we're all…good friends, I don't see why-"

"No, it's ok." The now green haired girl snapped her head to him.

"What?" The bluenette walked over to Tally.

"Just look after Rei for me." With that he walked outside to the girl, closing the door behind him. 

"You trust me?"

"Seeing as you're a copy of my old friend, yes."

"Is that the same person that you want me to meet?"

"Hn." He got out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. Then he handed it to Tally, who took it willingly. "He's going to get a kick out of this. Send him my regards." It was then that she really looked at the information on the card.

"Is this correct?" He only starred at her. "Of course. I'll be sure to tell him you said hello. Hm…"

"What?"

"What's the second number for?"

"That's Mr. Dickinson's number. Call him if you need anything."

"I will, and thank you." She heard a faint 'hn' and a small smile came to her lips. She turned to leave. "And I hope you find your way with that boy in there." Kai's eyes widened. "And yes, it's that obvious." She was gone in seconds, leaving a slightly stunned bluenette behind. 

"If she's right about anything it's that." Kai headed back inside. 

"Really."

"Yes really. It's painfully noticeable and I wish you'd just tell him already. It would make everything a lot better." He walked past her and sat down beside Rei. "Trust me on this one, I know." 

"Hn." She crossed her arms and 'hmphed'.

"Fine!" She turned to leave. "But if…if you do," She smiled weakly. "Promise you'll tell me about it afterwards, kay?" She walked away, barely shutting the door. Kai gazed at the neko-jin sleeping peacefully.

'I want to…but what will he say?' 

~*~

          It had been a whole day since the day at the abbey and Rei was still asleep. Everyone had stayed the night because they wanted to see if Rei would be all right, and because Mr. Dickinson said he was visiting in the morning. So for convenience, they had a sleep over. During the night Kai never left his side, he had made his bed right next to him just in case he woke. He tried to stay up, but the events of the day had exhausted most of his strength. 

Ray had recently come in to check up on her double and the bluenette and was sitting next to him now. She had changed a little more, her green hair was about shoulder length now, and her once golden eyes had slowly morphed to a gentle blue. The claws had vanished, so had most of Rei's normal actions and quirks. She was her own person, and she was pretty happy for that.

She looked at Rei and sighed, he had barely moved since she came in half an hour ago and she didn't know if this was part of the recovery process. "Come on Rei…wake up wake up." She touched his arm and felt a jolt pass through her. "Y-ouch!" Pulling away immediately she held her hand gently. "What in the world…oh." She gasped as Rei began to move. "Rei?" She leaned in. "You ok?" He mumbled some incoherent words so she leaned in closer. "Rei?" She poked his cheek. "Hello?" 

"Ugh…"

"Rei?" Her nose was mere inches from his face; she was starring at him intently. "Re-OW!" At that moment he sat up, hitting her square on the face and knocking her on her butt. She rubbed her forehead as Rei held his.

"Oh…ah…damn it…"

"Rei?" He sat up slowly this time and looked over.

"Ray?" He blinked. "You look…different." Knowing that he meant her hair and face she nodded. 

"Yea, um…I'll explain later." She crawled over to him. "So, how do you feel?" 

"Like I was hit by a truck…but since you do too I can't really count that. I'm still a little tired and sort of disoriented though…"

"That's because you just woke up. And who'd a thought all it would take was a little contact with your copy huh?" He smiled and stretched a bit, that's when he noticed Kai.

"Kai."

"He's been here all night. He never left your side since we got to Tyson's house."

"It's been a whole day?"

"Yup. You sure know how to snooze." 

"He was here…all night? Why?"

"He wanted to be here in case you woke up so that-" She stopped there when she realized that she could be spoiling the surprise. If Kai was going to tell him she didn't want to give it away.

"So that what?"

"Uh…nothing! Nothing, nothing at all!" She laughed nervously, trying to cover up her mistake. Then Kai started to shift, all the chatter no doubt waking the light sleeper. "Oh, Kai is waking up. Don't tell him that we've been talking ok? I want him to think that you just woke up."

          "Why?"

          "Because he wants to tell you something important." Kai sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes. When he saw Rei he jumped a little.

          "Rei, you're awake. How do you feel?" He smiled and pretended to yawn. 

"I'm still a little tired, but other than that I feel just fine." He turned to me.

          "Of course you're still tired, you just woke up silly." She scratched her cheek anxiously. "Well, I'm kind of hungry. I think I'll go get something to eat. You guys want anything?" She didn't wait for a response, but quickly got up and made for the door. "No, nothing? Ok, I'll see you later then!" She raced out, sliding the door shut behind her. Rei turned to Kai.

          "What's with her?" He just shrugged.

          "Honestly I don't know." He moved closer to him. "Are you sure you feel ok?" Rei nodded and smiled.

          "Yes. I should really be asking you that though. I mean I wasn't the only person there when the building started collapsing."

          "No you weren't, but you were the only one who almost…" He didn't want to finish his sentence, so he went a different way. "You know, you worry about others too much."

          "I can't help it. It's just natural for me to worry about people I care about."

          "I know, but you worry about everyone else so much that you don't think about yourself." Rei turned his head away from Kai.

          "Well, the people I care about will look after me."

          "Most of them aren't here now…I'm the only one here."

          "Yea…but you're my friend too. And you look after me a lot."

          "Of course I do," He paused for a second, making sure he knew what he was doing. "You're very special to me Rei." The neko-jin faced him again.

          "Really? How special?"

          "Very special."

          "How special?" Kai caught his smirk and began stroking his long raven hair which had fallen out of its binding some time ago.

          "Very special."

          "How special?" Kai brought his other hand up to cup his cheek, enjoying the feeling of his soft skin on his fingers. He leaned in and kissed his forehead lightly.

          "Very special." Rei smiled and looked into his ruby eyes.

          "How special?" A smirk found its way to Kai's lips as he thought about his answer.

          "Hm…" Rei waited patiently, leaning into his captain's touch. When Kai finally had a good response, he moved closer, dropped his hand from the kitten's angelic face to his waist and placed his lips on Rei's. Applying a little pressure, he gained a small moan from him and Kai grinned. Not wanting to push him too far though, he just enjoyed the feel of the kitten's soft lips against his own and continued to rake his hand through his long, silky hair. Although Kai didn't want to, he pulled away after a few seconds to finish his sentence, and to catch his breath. "That special." He gazed into the neko-jin's gorgeous, golden eyes, but saw that they were staring at the floor.

          'Oh no…don't tell me he doesn't feel the same…well, no matter what he says I have to take this maturely.' He ran his hand up Rei's side. "Rei, what's wrong?" He met the gaze of the now worried bluenette and whispered,

          "How special?" Kai sighed in relief and brought his forehead down onto his, a smile on his lips.

          "Very special. You're the most important thing to me, Rei. I don't think I could have gone another day without telling you that. Without showing you." Rei pulled away from him and turned around.

          "Well you could have fooled me. What took you so long?" Kai glared at him…but it disappeared quickly. He never could stay mad at him. So he just wrapped his arms around him from behind and nuzzled his neck.

          "I'm sorry. I was just…just…"

          "Afraid? Of me? You grew up in a place like that abbey and you're afraid of me?" Kai nodded and breathed in the scent of his hair.

          "I didn't know what you were going to say. And I didn't want you to hate me or something."

          "I would never hate you Kai. Maybe I would be angry with you, despise you, or want to rip your throat out…but never hate you." He laughed a little, relaxing his body and leaning into him.

          "How reassuring." Rei tilted his head up to the side, hoping to see his face.

          "But those were maybes…and right now, I think I love you." Kai moved his head so that he met Rei's gaze.  

          "Good, because I love you too my little kitten." Their lips met once more, this time Kai ran his tongue across the boy's lower lip…wanting to experience more than just the wonderful feel of his neko-jin's lips. 'Yea, very mature…' Rei knew what he wanted, but denied him…for now. He pulled away to see confusion written on his face. Rei just grinned.

          "Mm…not yet." 

          "Why not?" He asked playfully, tickling his neko-jin slightly. The raven-haired blader quickly escaped his embrace, got up and whispered in his ear,

          "Because some things you need to earn." With that he grabbed his bandana and ran out to the others.

          "I need to earn it huh?" He picked himself up and ran after him. Already thinking of a few ways he could do just that. 

~*~

          The others were in Tyson's room, playing games and eating more food. Max and the bluenette were trying to toss mini marshmallows into each other's mouth…missing terribly. Ray was trying to give the two tips when they tried again, and Kenny typing something and talking with Dizzy. After Tyson tossed another marshmallow, which landed in Max's messy, blonde hair, he heard something crash outside and looked up. 

          "What was that?" The others looked to see that Kai had launched Dranzer and it hit the gate. "What does he think he's doing?"

          "Get back here Rei!" Everyone turned in time to see Rei running away from the bluenette and heading towards them. Kai set Dranzer again. "Let it rip!" The blue blade charged in their direction.

          "Guys get down!" Rei exclaimed as he dove onto the bed that lay unmade. Dranzer flew over his head and straight out the window, landing in the bushes on the other side. Max sat up.

          "What was all that about?" Ray looked up at them and grinned. 

          "Oh…nothing. Just having a little discussion with-"

          "With me!" Kai stormed in and straddled Rei, who was struggling under him.

          "Get off, get off, get off!" The bluenette leaned in closer, his lips briefly touching the younger boy's earlobe. 

          "Not until you give me what I've earned." Rei shivered at the contact but shook his head and continued struggling, the other kids looked to each other in confusion.

          "You know what…I don't even want to know."

          "I agree with Tyson."

          "I'll second that." As they crept out, Ray stopped at the threshold.

          "Be gentle. You never know when a tournament will come up, so don't be too hard on him Rei." The two looked over to her. "What? It'll be too hard to break in a new captain." They each grabbed a handful of mini marshmallows and threw them at her, but ended up hitting the door as she closed it quickly. 

~*~ Ray's Journal ~*~

          Mr. Dickinson gave me this because he wanted me to write any changes I go through or anything that seems different. I hope he doesn't mind if I use the back pages as an actual diary though. I probably won't write in it too often, but I wanted to put this in so that I remember how it all happened. 

I know I'd want to read the good stuff first, so I'll start with that. Kai finally told Rei how he felt about him. ^_^ I'm so happy for my brother! Oh, I call Rei that sometimes just because it feels like I'm related to him. I think some of his energy is still in me. I still have fangs! But anyway, yea!

They're always together…it's so sweet. We're all at the park right now and Kai's hugging him under the tree. I can't really tell because the view from here sucks (And now I wished I had sat closer), but I think Kai's nuzzling Rei's neck, still holding his waist. He's really protective him, but after almost losing him I suppose he has a right to be. Rei doesn't mind though, he loves the attention as much as he loves him. Oh…and I bet he loved that lip smack attack too. 

          And Tyson and Max aren't giggling about it either. Both of them are skipping stones down at the lake. I think they like each other. Even Dizzi thinks so. I've been talking to her lately; it's interesting to talk to another bitbeast. Well, I know I'm not a bitbeast anymore, but I can't shake the feeling that I could convert to a jaguar if I was angry enough. 

          Anyway, I decided to stay here for a while. Mr. Dickinson and some scientists at the BBA research facility want to study me. The idea doesn't sound too good to me, but it shouldn't be as bad as the stuff they were doing to me at the abbey. Plus I think I owe it to them for locking away those terrible people. 

I live with Rei and his relatives, though it seems like I live with Kai too since he's always over. But that's ok; I like him. Every couple days or so, the whole group gets together to 'train', though…we don't do much of it. I only remember battling Tyson once (Yes, I got my own beyblade ^.^), and even that battle was stopped when Max came with lunch. I think it's just an excuse to get together. No one complains about it, I certainly don't. Sometimes Kai does though. He always says, "What if a tournament comes up and we're not ready?" Then we would all look to Rei and he would take Kai off to another room for a minute for so. And when they came back he says, "Fine, we can rest today, but next time I'm training you all into the ground." Something tells me that as long as Rei's around…we won't have to train ever again.

I have to wrap this entry up; it looks like Tyson's hungry. We'll probably go back to his house and 'train' a little. Hm…I remember thinking that everything's going to be ok after I met Rei, and I was right. Good friends, home, life. Just throw in an attractive panther bitbeast-turned-human and I'd call this paradise. 

                                       ~The Spirit Within Me~

~*~*~*~

SS-There…*slumps into the chair* all done.

Tym-Now onto…uh…'Sent to Save Me'?

SS-If I can think of what to write. I think I'll either do a K/R one-shot or a chapter fic for M-sen's birthday. 

Tym-Ok…just don't put it off for too long. Please review one last time! It'll make us really happy! And look out for her one-shots…they're usually better then her chapter fics. 

SS- #. …argh…

&Previews&

- On the plane ride back home from Russia, Kai finds Rei's journal…opened just a bit. What do you think will happen next? 

- (AU) Doing what he's good at, Kai's on a mission to find and capture a mysterious creature in the Umber Woods for a client. However, once he finds it Kai discovers that he's more than a prize to be caught and is reluctant to give him up.

                       Tell me what sounds good people! Ja ne!


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